The Symphony of Animosity
by DCFanatic4life
Summary: What if Stephanie hadn't married Hunter at the drive-thru, and what if she hadn't married Test? Well, there is one possibility...
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: The characters and real people portrayed in this story do not belong to me, the characters belong to WWE, and the real people own themselves. The story contains mild swearing and I guess adult situations, you have been warned.

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A/N: This idea has been bugging me for a while now, and watching old Jericho/Steph stuff, it just kept wanting to be written. So here it is, and this WILL be a series, and I will take liberties with what happens. It's basically a "what-if" scenario.

Please leave a review and tell me what you think. The first chapter is short because it's the first chapter, they'll get longer. Be brutal if you want, but just leave a review and tell me what you think. :)

Enjoy. :)

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Chris Jericho came into the company with an attitude. Whether that attitude could be attributed to his personality or his experiences in WCW, you couldn't really tell, but he did have an attitude. Was it a bad one? If you were looking at it from an outsider's point of view, then yes he had a bad attitude, but he didn't think so. He just thought that he was cocky and deservedly so. He had never really gotten the opportunity in WCW, and he was now in the WWF to try and rectify that situation.

He thought that he could be a great draw for this company, and be one of the greatest superstars in the business, one of the things that WCW had never thought he could be. But how could he be when they refused to let anyone but the top stars do anything really noteworthy? He was going to be great here, he could feel it, and if it came at the expense of being seen with a bad attitude, then so be it really, so freaking be it.

He had just gotten to his first show, and he had already interrupted The Rock, saying that he was going to be the savior of the company, and on some level, he really believed he would be. The Rock had been indignant to his interruption, but Chris didn't give a damn. The Rock was just going to have to deal with him now that he was here, and if Chris had his way, he was going to be the one making the big speeches that everyone was enthralled with.

He walked down the hallway, intending to go back to his locker room when he saw a rather demure-looking female sitting on a chair in the hallway, reading what looked to be a book. Chris smirked to himself, he recognized the woman; it was Stephanie McMahon. He had seen her on television, being her cute, little, innocent self, and it kind of disgusted him. There was no way she was that innocent, he just had to find out if that was her real self.

He snatched the book from her hand and looked at it, "Boring."

"Can you please just give that back?" Stephanie asked politely.

"Nah," he said, shaking his head and tossing away the book. "Why read a stupid book when you can be talking to the one, the only, the Ayatollah of Rock and Rollah!"

Stephanie rolled her eyes a little, "I'm sorry, but I'd rather not. I would much rather just read my book and not talk to anyone right now."

"What's the matter baby? You're too speechless to speak with me? I know that I'm really a rock-star and a bonafide superstar, but you don't have to be nervous around me," Chris said with a slightly smarmy smile.

Stephanie just looked at him like he had grown two heads. She was not amused by his behavior as she had had enough of guy's behaviors over the past couple of months, especially her brother's. She was tired, and she was angry, and all she wanted was to be alone, but this guy was here, and he was bothering her. She knew him vaguely from his work in WCW, but it wasn't like she was scoping out the competition, so she wasn't quite familiar with his body of work.

He looked cocky enough, his hair in a high ponytail, and a rather sparkly shirt, and the pants, the tight fitting, vinyl pants that he looked poured into. She trained her eyes back up to his face and saw that he was smirking at her rather lecherously, popping an eyebrow, knowing that she was giving him the once over. She gave him a bored look and sat there. She had a boyfriend who she loved, and she was not impressed by this brash "rock-star."

"I'm anything but nervous," she said, her voice starting to pick up some edge. "And trust me, if I was nervous it wouldn't be over you. Anybody ever tell you that you're a pretty boy trying to be tough?"

"No, but there's a first time for everything," Chris said, smiling at her. "You've got spunk, I like that in a girl."

"And you've got attitude, something I DON'T like in a guy, so if you would just leave, I can go and pick up my book that you so rudely tossed away. I don't think that we have anything further to discuss here."

"You don't even know my name," Chris said, coaxing her not to leave.

"I know your name just fine, you're Chris Jericho. And I gotta say, for someone my dad invested quite a bit of time and money on, it doesn't seem all that worth it," she dished out.

Chris gave a rather impressed look, his eyebrows raising in surprise. He had been led to believe that Stephanie was nothing but a goody-goody, or at least that was what came across to him. She dressed conservatively and without flash, and she was not wearing all that much make-up. She was nothing more than a challenge to Chris, but when he looked in her eyes, he saw a certain spark that intrigued him.

"Nice one," he complimented, he could at least give credit where credit was due. "But come on, you want to talk to me, I'm lonely."

"I have a boyfriend, a serious boyfriend," she said bluntly.

"So that's going to put a cramp on what exactly?" Chris asked. "Did I imply that I wanted to bed you? I don't think that I did, but I guess since I'm not recording this conversation I don't know what I said."

"Look, I don't know who the hell you think you are, but you can't just come on to me. I have tons of people who care about me, and they would never let your grubby fingers touch me," Stephanie spat out, standing up and staring him down. "You are disgusting, and I wouldn't let you touch me if you were the last man on Earth and had the last morsel of food, I'd rather starve."

"Well, you sure can get your ire up," Chris said, leaning against the wall behind him. "I didn't ask for your personal commentary on me, but it's nice to know. I plan on making a big splash in the company so you better get acquainted with me."

"Is that some sort of twisted way of hitting on me?"

Chris scoffed, "Are you so obsessed with me that you insist on turning an otherwise innocent conversation into some way to get into bed with me?"

"No," she sneered.

"I can have any woman I want to, any time I want to, and let me tell you, there is no shortage of women in this world that are willing to get into my bed. So you are nothing special, and I wouldn't waste my time trying to hit on you when I could snap my fingers and get anyone I want."

"Then what is your problem!"

"I just wanted to talk to you, is that so wrong?" he asked, batting his eyelashes.

"I don't believe that," she said, going over to pick up her book. Chris tilted his head a little appreciatively, Stephanie was wearing a skirt and she looked damn good in it. She straightened up and he went back to looking nonchalant. She was going to be a challenge, that was for sure, but he always liked a challenge. "So why don't you leave?"

"I have no friends in the company," he pouted, "I thought you would want to be my friend."

"I'm surprised you have friends period," she muttered. "And I have enough friends, thank you."

"No, thank you, that view was magnificent," he winked, and Stephanie looked aghast.

"You were looking at me bending over!" she screeched, and for a second Chris lost all control because that screech was shrill and definitely scary. But he went back to his cool self when he saw the anger in her eyes.

"You were the one giving it, not the other way around," he pointed out. "And I think that I paid you a compliment."

"Calling my ass magnificent is NOT a compliment," Stephanie said, feeling suddenly very self-conscious.

"Geez, someone has high standards," Chris answered. "But don't worry, if I get to see a little bit more, I think that I can come up with a better assessment of your entire being."

"You're…gross!" she yelled.

Chris was about to answer when he saw another figure rush up to Stephanie's side. He expected it to be that horse-face of a boyfriend, but it was her older brother. Stephanie cringed outwardly; her and her brother were not on the best of terms right now. He didn't like Test, and didn't approve of their relationship, and hadn't really from the start. She just wanted to be happy with Andrew, but Shane was trying to see that that never happened.

"What the hell are you doing with my baby sister!" Shane yelled, grabbing a hold of Stephanie's arm.

"I'm not a baby!" Stephanie screamed at him, tearing herself away from him. "I'm a woman!"

"No, you are my baby sister and you always will be, and I won't have her being harassed backstage!"

"I don't know where you get your information from, but I wasn't harassing her, I was simply having a conversation with her," Chris said coolly.

"Look, you just stay the hell away from her, or I will have you fired. I don't give a shit if you are my father's new pet project, you can be fired, and if you lay a hand on Stephanie, then I will see to it your ass is booted from this company so fast."

"Well, it's a good thing that I got such a good agent and an airtight contract isn't it?" Chris said casually. "I think I'm here for a long, long time."

"Shane, just leave ok, I was handling it," Stephanie said, her voice overtly annoyed.

"Handling it? You can't handle anything little girl," Shane said to her.

Stephanie bit her lip in anger, "Stop saying I'm a baby, geez, what the hell is it going to take for you to see that I'm not a little girl?"

"Stephanie, this doesn't concern you. I don't like you Jericho, I didn't like you in WCW, and now I don't like you here, so you better watch your back, because I'll be watching you. Make one wrong move, and you'll see your contract disappear, just like that, remember that Jericho."

"Ok…Boss," Chris said derisively. Shane gave him a dirty look and went to pull Stephanie with him. Stephanie pulled away abruptly and stood her ground. Shane threw up his hands in frustration and walked away, muttering under his breath. "You really shouldn't let him get to you."

"Shut up," Stephanie said, "You don't know anything!"

Stephanie walked away too, leaving Chris by himself for the moment. That was his first real encounter with the McMahon family at its worst, and he found it to be funny. They were crazy, but he liked that. And Stephanie was definitely not bad to look at either; she had a lot of potential. It was also fun to get Shane mad because he acted like a child.

Chris saw another challenge.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks for all the lovely reviews. I hope you're satisfied with where I'm going to take this. :)

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Shane stormed into his father's office, irate and unkempt. His little sister was being a pain in his side. She wouldn't listen to reason, no matter how many times he told her just what was right and what was wrong with her relationship with Test, or Andrew, as she liked to call him. Didn't she realize that she was out of Test's league, that she was above him? She just couldn't get her mind around that concept.

Then Chris Jericho had the nerve to run his mouth off around his sister, and then to him. He had not supported Chris being put into the company, had opposed it, but his mother and his father had agreed that they wanted to bring Chris in. Shane would've been perfectly happy letting him stew over there in WCW forever.

"Shane what is it?" Vince asked impatiently as he sat at his massive desk.

"It's Chris Jericho Dad, you need to fire him!" Shane said, his voice short.

"What! Are you crazy? The man has been here for one night! If you think that I'm going to invest as much as I'm investing in him and then drop him after one night, I'm going to have to put you in a mental asylum."

"He's not good Dad, we don't need him, we've got plenty of other guys."

"Do you know the kind of charisma Chris has? Did you see him out there with The Rock? He was oozing charisma and the fans were eating him up. No way am I getting rid of him," Vince said resolutely and Shane knew that he was fighting a losing battle.

"But Dad," Shane argued. "I just saw him outside harassing Stephanie!"

"What?" Vince asked, and Shane was sure that he had gotten Chris Jericho out of his company with that. Vince was so very protective of Stephanie that he was sure to get furious over the fact that his precious Princess was being harassed by anyone.

"Yeah, I saw it with my own eyes," Shane said, fudging the truth a little. Shane's biggest problem was that he failed to see Stephanie as she was now, and instead saw Stephanie as she used to be, a helpless little girl who wanted to be by her big brother's side at all times.

"Where was Test!" Vince fumed, and that was not what Shane thought he was going to say. Shane thought he would say something along the lines of where the hell was Chris Jericho, or something to that effect, but not asking where was Test.

"I don't know," Shane said, "Do you mean right now, or do you mean when I was with Stephanie?"

"When you were with Stephanie of course!" Vince said, standing up. "I can't believe he would leave her to her own devices like that! HE should be around to protect her, not her brother for God's sakes."

"Dad, Test is scum, I don't want him around her either."

"Yes, that may be so, but if her boyfriend were around, then he would be there to protect her, it doesn't matter whether you like him or not, you wouldn't like anyone with her."

"That's true, but it's Stephanie Dad, Stephanie, you're daughter."

"I'm not senile," Vince told him, "I'm fully aware of who my daughter is. But Test should take care of her."

"Test is scum Dad, SCUM."

"Shane, I'm well aware of how you feel about Test," Vince said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "But Stephanie is an adult now, no matter how you feel and no matter how I feel. And at some point, we're going to have accept the man that she has decided to be with."

"Fine Dad, fine," Shane said, storming back out of the office.

Stephanie didn't look back as she walked away from Chris Jericho. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of a second look. How dare he be so crass with her! Didn't he know who she was? She was Stephanie McMahon, and her father owned this company and owned him…and yet he didn't seem to care, and it was kind of odd to be treated like her father wasn't a rich businessman with a billion dollar company.

But Chris Jericho was gross, and nothing at all like the type of person she normally wanted to be friends with. He was too…well noisy was one word for it, brash was another. And the way he just picked up her book and threw it onto the floor; how could someone just do that without apologizing? What kind of person was Chris Jericho?

Well, Chris saw himself as someone that shouldn't be trifled with. He was a unique person to be sure, and he liked wreaking havoc wherever appropriate. He had made himself a walking conspiracy theorist in WCW, and he wanted to do even bigger things now that he was in the WWF. And there was so much to do for sure, a whole new cornucopia of people for him to beat, and that was just how he wanted it. He wanted to make an impact.

That Stephanie though, he had a feeling there was a whole other layer to her personality, to her entire being, and something made him want to find out. He wasn't the type of guy who settled for one girl. He was the type of guy who went girl-hopping. He was aware that made him a callous person, but he didn't care. He was just aware of it, and that was really half the battle.

But back to Stephanie. She was intriguing for sure, but Chris knew that he wasn't going to go after her or anything. What point would that prove? He wasn't in the business of girlfriend-stealing, and she had made it perfectly clear that she was taken. Besides, though Stephanie was pretty, there were much prettier girls out there that would be easier to get into bed. That didn't mean he wouldn't have his fun with Stephanie when he could. He was just that type of guy.

He went to his hotel and then to his room to change into something more appropriate for clubbing. He was going to have to go by himself because he didn't know anyone here well enough to go out with. He didn't really mind anyways, other people might mess up his game, and he wanted to celebrate his triumphant debut in the company. He left his room and went to the elevator to go down to the lobby.

And then there she was again, and Chris just smirked. She dropped her head down, and just stared down. He sidled up to her, but she just moved away from him, but he just sidled closer. This went on until Stephanie was backed into a corner, and Chris was bearing down on her. She just kept staring down at the red carpet on the bottom of the elevator.

"Oh come on, I'm not even dignified with a look."

"Whatever," Stephanie mumbled.

"Whatever? All I get is a whatever, I am nothing but kind to you, and all I get is a whatever. Well, that's a hard pill to swallow. I mean, you couldn't even come up with something clever, all I get is that whatever."

"My brother will kill you. How's that for clever?"

"It's better," he answered, grinning at her while wiggling his eyebrows playfully.

"I was just going to meet my boyfriend," Stephanie told him, and why she didn't know, but she found herself blurting it out like it would somehow get him to leave her alone.

"That's nice, but why not meeting in one of your rooms? Or is this Test guy into that whole, well, you know what I'm talking about," Chris said with a chuckle. "Believe me though, if you were my girl, I wouldn't be able to keep my hands off of you."

"Should I be flattered?" Stephanie asked sarcastically.

"I would be," Chris shrugged, "But I'll allow you to come up with your own opinions."

"Did it ever occur to you that I don't like you?" Stephanie asked sassily.

Chris raised an eyebrow and pursed his lips a little bit. Then he rubbed his chin, deep in thought, then tapped it. "Nope, didn't occur to me."

"Well then I'll make it a little bit clearer for you. I don't like you, there, it's out now, and you can just leave me alone."

"And if I don't want to."

"My boyfriend will kick your ass."

"Your brother will kill me, your boyfriend will kick my ass, is there any other man in your life that wants to get his hand on me. I'm not worried so much about the fighting part, but I don't really go for men, so them going for me, not really my style."

"You're just here to ruin my life aren't you?" Stephanie said, cocking her head to her side. "I'd have a lot more respect for you if you came out and said that, that you came into the company just to harass me and make me feel uncomfortable."

"Sorry Stephanie, can I call you Stephanie…eh, doesn't matter, I'll say it anyway," he winked, "But no, I'm sorry to inform you that me coming into this company had nothing to do with you. Maybe in your own little world, you believe that every guy is willing to fall at your feet, but I'm not."

"So then why are you harassing me like you are?" Stephanie said as the door opened to the ground level on what was probably the slowest elevator in the universe. Either that or because this particular hotel had thirty floors.

"Because I can," he answered with a smile, and her face just dropped into one of shock when she realized he really did have no motive for doing what he was doing to her.

"Why me then? Why not one of the other girls around here?"

"Because I saw you first," he told her.

"You know, crossing me isn't going to do you any favors. In fact, it'll probably just get my father really mad at you, and my dad is not someone that you want to mess with."

"I'm not worried."

"Well you should be, I'm Daddy's Little Girl, and there is nothing that he wouldn't do for me."

"He can't fire me, so that's out of the question."

"He can never give you a title shot," Stephanie said snootily. "And he would do it too if it made me happy! And maybe I will tell him that you don't deserve to have a title shot any time soon, or EVER. Maybe I'll tell him that!"

"Ok, go for it, then I'll just make your entire family's lives a living hell."

Stephanie stomped her foot and actually growled in anger. Chris just had to laugh at her as she stood there, fuming. She was looking so funny, and it was so much fun to just rile her up and see her light off like a firecracker. She was opening her mouth to say something when a big, blond man walked over to her, and Chris recognized him as Test, or as Stephanie called him, Andrew.

"Hey babe, you ok?" Test asked, sneering over at Chris.

"Yes, now that you're here," Stephanie said, looking up at him adoringly. It seriously made Chris want to puke. He was not one to care about public displays of affection, especially after he himself had been caught making out in public a few…dozen times. But he did have a problem with the utter mushiness these two were displaying.

"Oh dear Lord," Chris muttered to himself.

"He bothering you?" Test asked, pointing a thumb in Chris's direction.

"No," Stephanie said shortly, and her response surprised Chris. He expected her to rat him out at her first opportunity. After all, what did she have to lose by telling Test that he had been harassing her? Not much, and she would probably enjoy seeing him get beat up by her boyfriend.

"Ok," Test said suspiciously, his eyes flitting from Stephanie to Chris and back again. "I'm going to go pull the car up."

"I'll wait here," Stephanie said, leaning up to kiss Test's cheek, but never breaking her gaze away from Chris. Test smiled at her and squeezed her hand before going out into the night and to the parking lot. "I know what you're thinking."

"Well, I made it pretty obvious," Chris responded.

"I'm not a stupid idiot Chris, no matter what you think."

"I never thought that!" Chris said indignantly.

"I can fight my own battles, and if you want one, you have one," she told him, trying to sound as menacing as possible.

Chris nodded his head, "Well, I did figure you for the type to not go out without putting up a fight. I have to admire that in a person."

"I just want you to leave me alone."

"I just wanted to go clubbing Stephanie, and you happened to be in the elevator, but if you want me to leave you alone, I will, see ya," Chris said to her with a wave and then he was off. Stephanie was surprised that that was all it took to get him away from her.

Chris laughed to himself as he thought of her. She had been surprised that he could be so cordial with her. But Chris liked to keep people on their toes, never expecting what was next with him. He could go from the world's biggest asshole to a gentleman in no time flat, and he was proud of being able to do that. It usually was a surprise to whomever he was with, but surprises were always good…always.

"So what's with that Jericho guy?" Test asked as he and Stephanie were driving to wherever they were going, Stephanie wasn't sure.

"I don't know," Stephanie said simply, and without emotion.

"Was he trying to hit on you?"

"I don't think so," she said, this time her voice confused. She didn't think that he was trying to hit on her, but maybe he was and she couldn't even tell. But she didn't care, she was with Test. She turned to Test then smiled, "Besides, if he were to come on to me, I'd turn him down because I have the best boyfriend in the entire world."

"Say that like you mean it," Test joked.

"You know I mean it, I love you," Stephanie told him sincerely. She had never been in love before, but she felt like she was now. She had never met anyone quite like Test, and he was so sweet to her, and kind. She felt like this could be the real deal, like this could be something that she could have for the rest of her life.

Sure the rest of her life was a long time, but she could see herself with Test, marrying him, having kids with him, anything and everything. And she wanted that. She wanted a normal family life like the kids she had grown up with. She didn't resent her parents for working so much when she was younger, but she just wanted something different, to experience something she didn't know. It would be an adventure of sorts.

"I love you too," Test told her, glancing over to give her a wide smile and she tucked some of his hair behind his ears. She never thought she'd fall for a wrestler, had seen the hazards of the business firsthand and she never expected it to be the one place where she'd find love.

"I'm glad I'm not the only one that feels that way," Stephanie said to him as she turned her eyes away from her boyfriend and to the road in front of her. "Besides, Chris Jericho has nothing on you."

"How do you know?"

"I can just tell," Stephanie said. "He's a one-hit wonder I'm sure. So he made a big debut, big deal, he just thinks he's a hot shot right now. But I believe in you Andrew, and I believe you're going to do great things."

"You're the only one I let call me Andrew, you know that right?"

She laughed, "I just don't see the point in calling you Test. That seems so stupid, if you ask me. You're my boyfriend, I shouldn't call you by your wrestling name. Besides, I like Andrew better, more dignified."

"Ok, whatever you want." Stephanie smiled. She was a Princess after all, and a Daddy's Little Girl.

She liked the sound of that…whatever she wanted…


	3. Chapter 3

Test ran his hands through Stephanie's long, brown hair. She leaned against him happily, just watching the show. She was so happy to be with him like this. He was her first serious boyfriend, and she was so in love it was sickening. Her father hadn't really wanted her to date a wrestler, but Test had been so sweet and so kind to her that she found him hard to resist.

He was going to be good for her; that was what her mother was always saying. She had to agree with her mightily, because she had never felt safer than when she was in his arms. She just wanted to stay in them forever, and be with him forever. She could picture it now…a nice house, beautiful kids, and a lovely husband, it was perfect in every single of one of her daydreams.

"Do you think we'll always be this happy?" Stephanie asked Test, tilting her head back so that she could look at him. He smiled at her, wide and inviting. She loved his smile.

"I hope so," Test said. "I think we will."

"Good, because I can really get used to this, and I wouldn't want to get used to this if this wasn't going anywhere."

"Don't worry about that," Test said knowingly. "Things have a way of working themselves out."

"I hope they do. The only way that things could get really perfect was if my brother actually accepted our relationship for what it is, and realized that I'm a big girl, an adult and that I can make my own decisions."

"He'll realize it babe," he answered.

"I'm not sure when. What gives him the right to think that you're not good enough for me?" Stephanie asked angrily. "You're perfect for me."

Test smiled and kissed her temple gently. "I'm glad you feel that way."

She turned so she was kneeling next to him. She placed her hands on his shoulders and kissed him. "How could I feel any other way?"

"I have no idea, but I love you Stephanie McMahon."

"I love you Andrew," Stephanie said back, kissing him again. She wrapped her arms around him and he pulled her closer to her. They were going at it pretty heavily when Shane came into the room, files in hand.

"What the hell?" Shane said.

"Go away Shane," Stephanie said, turning to her brother. "What do you have? Spy cameras trained on me at every second of every day? You're always barging in where you aren't wanted."

"Well Dad had some accounting things that he needed to go over and since you're the one who's good with numbers, he wanted you to look them over, and I'm just delivering them. But that spy camera thing is a good idea."

"Don't even think about it," Stephanie said, standing up and walking over to Shane. She grabbed the files from him and then practically shoved him out of the door. "Thank you and goodbye."

"You aren't even going to invite me in?"

"Nope," Stephanie said with a smile. "Only people who truly care about me are allowed in here, and since you obviously don't care about me enough to let me run my own life, I'm going to have to show you the door. And look…there it is, now out!"

"Fine, fine, but I was just being the messenger, nothing more."

"Uh huh," Stephanie nodded. "Or so you could spy on me."

"I'm going to go now, bye sis," Shane said.

Stephanie sighed and went to sit on the couch. She eyed the papers and though she didn't have a calculator with her. The numbers looked right and so she put them down on the coffee table, going back to Test. He welcomed her back with open arms and she settled herself against him again.

"Oh hey, I have a match to get to," Test told her after a few minutes.

"Oh no," Stephanie pouted. "I want you to stay here with me, don't go."

"I have to, I'm scheduled for a match."

"Fine, but can you make it quick?" Stephanie asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him.

"I promise that I'm going to squash the guy so fast you won't even notice that I'm gone," he answered.

"Do you want me to come out there with you? I could be your support."

"Nah, I don't want you to have to go to the hassle, but if I could trouble you to come accompany me to the gorilla, that would be a huge favor. I mean, if you have to stay here and look at the papers, that's fine too, but if you want to come with me…"

"I would love to, there's no place I'd rather be," Stephanie told him, standing up. She extended her hands to him and he took them in his own, letting her pull him up slowly and towards her. She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him for a moment before heading for the door.

They were close to the gorilla so the walk was short and Test kissed her before leaving her backstage. She wrapped her arms around herself as she watched her boyfriend go out there to fight. She smiled as she saw him enter the ring, a huge smile on his face. She only hoped that huge smile was because of her, but she didn't want to be presumptuous or anything.

"Well, well, well, we meet again."

Stephanie frowned and turned her head, "You again."

"We have got to stop meeting like this," Chris said as he sized up Stephanie. Stephanie turned to him and gave him a scathing look.

"YOU have got to stop following me."

"I would never dare do such a thing," Chris said with a smile. "I just wanted to talk to you. I really enjoy talking to you."

"Well, I really enjoy NOT talking to you, so how about we try that for a while," Stephanie said, starting to turn her back to him but he took a few steps closer. Stephanie threw her hands up in defense. "Take one step closer and I'll call my brother, and he'll mess you up."

"I wasn't going to touch you, geez Stephanie, you'd think that I was some kind of bad man or something, and I assure you that I'm not," he said, trying to look innocent, which she didn't believe for one second.

"Why are you constantly following me? Why can't you go follow any of the other women around here? I'm sure you could find one that might be willing to sleep with you."

"How many times do I have to tell you that I don't want to sleep with you?" Chris asked nicely. He wouldn't kick Stephanie out of his bed, that was for sure, but he wasn't actively trying to get her in said bed either. He just found it fun to poke at her, like when you teased an animal with something until they became irate. That's what he was doing with Stephanie. He just wanted to push all of her buttons and see which ones made her the maddest.

"Then I don't get you."

"I can't try to be friends with you?"

"Why do you want me as a friend?" she asked with exasperation.

"So I can use you of course," Chris said sarcastically.

"See, this is why nobody likes you," Stephanie pointed out.

"I think tons of people like me," Chris answered. "I'm just sorry that you're not one of them. And apparently, your father and brother kind of hate me now too. I guess I shouldn't have gone out there earlier and made fun of them. Too bad for your dad that he can't fire me. God, I love contracts."

"You made fun of my brother and father, why would you do that?"

"Because I can Stephanie, haven't you ever just wanted to rile someone up?"

"No," she denied, shaking her head. "I would never want to do that."

"Not even once, not even to your brother? He was the same one that was hounding you about Test wasn't he? Seems that he would be the perfect candidate to make fun of, but you're too pure and wholesome for that aren't you."

"I loathe you," Stephanie said through gritted teeth. "And maybe my father will find something in your contract that makes him able to fire you. I certainly wouldn't miss you."

"Now see, that's the kind of comment that really hurts," Chris said, patting his hand over his chest. "I thought we were starting to have some sort of camaraderie."

"And what would that be over?"

"I don't know…hey, looks like your boyfriend just lost," Chris said, pointing to the screen. "That's too bad, you'd think that Vince would want his future son-in-law to be more of a winner, someone who would really bear the company cross. Be the banner if you will."

"What are you talking about? Andrew and I aren't engaged."

"Oh, silly me, and here I thought that he surely would've asked you by now. I mean, it must be a cushy position being married into the McMahon family. I'm sure Andrew," Chris said with a laugh, "would really like that kind of security."

"That's not why he's with me!" Stephanie protested. "He loves me!"

"I'm not arguing, but still, I would think Vinnie would like someone better for you, someone more suited for you, but I guess I'm wrong."

"Andrew is good enough for me and for my family."

"But really Stephanie, is he?" Chris said, knowing that he was just stirring the pot on Stephanie's anger. She looked at him with a rapidly heating hatred in her eyes, and she was seething. He took great enjoyment in this and just watched her grit her teeth.

"It's none of your business."

"Fine, didn't want to plant the seeds or anything," Chris said, raising his hands defensively. "I'll just leave you alone now."

"Good, and stay away from me…and from my family!" she added as an aside.

"I'll try, but I really make no promises Stephanie," he winked before walking away.

Stephanie scowled and was content to stand there and watch him walk away when she heard her name being called out. She looked around for a moment, not being able to pinpoint the sound, but it was Test calling her, and she realized he was calling her from the ring. She looked confused for a moment before hearing that he was trying to get her to come down to the ring. She wondered briefly if he was hurt, but he didn't seem to be on the monitor.

She hesitantly went up the stairs and parted the curtain, stepping out into the arena. There was no music to accompany her and she looked rather nervous in her purple sweater-set and gray skirt. She looked around with a nervous smile and climbed the ring steps, getting on the apron and entering the ring where Test was sitting on the second rope and holding the top rope for her.

"Steph, I'm really glad that you're out here," Test said, handing her a microphone.

"Ok," Stephanie said, looking at him strangely. "What's this about Andrew?"

"Well, I was just out here, and I couldn't stop thinking about you during my entire match. You had me entirely distracted," he told her.

She blushed a little bit and looked down at the canvas before looking up at him, "Well, if I had known that I wouldn't have talked to you tonight, that way you could've won your match."

"I don't think I could go a whole day without talking to you." Stephanie smiled wider. She didn't know what she had done to deserve such attention from her boyfriend. She was a little bit uncomfortable airing this out in the ring, but she loved Test too much to question what he was doing. If he wanted to do this, she would let him.

"Well that's good, cause the same goes for me," she answered.

"In fact, I don't think that I can go a minute without you, and I certainly don't want to go my entire lifetime without talking to you," Test said, and then got down on one knee.

Stephanie was expecting anything else to happen at that moment. A plane could've crashed through the ceiling and she would've expected it more than she was expecting this. She took a step back as she saw Test reach into the back pocket of his pants and pull out a box. Stephanie gasped at the implication. She couldn't believe that this was happening. She was about to get proposed to and she had had no idea whatsoever that this was going to happen.

"Andrew," she whispered, more for herself than for anyone else.

"Stephanie, I love you, will you marry me?" Test asked.

"Yes!" Stephanie grinned, throwing the microphone down after she had yelled her answer.

Test stood up and hugged her tightly, swinging her around in a circle, not letting her go. She grinned in happiness as he returned it with a grin of his own. She smiled and leaned up to kiss him with a vigor never seen before as he slipped the ring on her finger. Stephanie pulled away, a stray tear trailing down her face as she looked at the ring. It was modest, like she was, and she loved it.

"I love you so much," Stephanie said softly into his ear, then stared at her ring again. "I love it so much. It's now my favorite, favorite ring."

"I can't believe you love it," Test said. "I thought that it might be too small."

"No, I love it so much," Stephanie answered.

She didn't know what to do with herself then, only hearing the mad cheering from the audience. She didn't know that she was up the ramp until she felt Test leading her backstage. Her mother was waiting there for her, and she hugged her tightly before showing off her ring to her, Linda grinning as she inspected it and deemed it beautiful. Vince was shaking hands with Test and then came over to hug Stephanie.

"Congratulations Princess," he told her.

"Thank you Daddy," Stephanie said, grabbing onto Test's hand tightly as he gave it a squeeze.

"Why don't we go have a glass of champagne in my office?" Vince said, "I'll have someone send some up from catering."

"Sounds wonderful," Stephanie said, then saw Chris Jericho out of the corner of her eye. "Go ahead without me, I just want to watch this one match."

"You want me to stay with you babe?" Test asked.

"No, I'll just be a few minutes," Stephanie answered, placating him with a soft kiss before he walked off with her parents. She sauntered over to Chris and he smiled at her. "You knew he was going to ask me didn't you?"

"I had overheard him talking to your dad about it. Asking permission and everything…what a catch."

"You had no right to listen in on that, and then tell me about it."

"You didn't pick up on it, so it was no problem."

"I don't know why you get pleasure out of torturing me."

"I don't, maybe your whole family…but let me be the first to congratulate you on your engagement. So tell me, when will Test be getting his first WWF title shot? Shouldn't be too long right? I know Vince wants his future son-in-law to be on top of the mountain."

"That's not true."

"We'll see," Chris told her. "But really, congratulations."

"I just don't know why you would tell me," Stephanie said.

"Well, maybe I have a reason…then again, maybe I don't. All in due time…Princess was it? All in due time Princess."


	4. Chapter 4

Stephanie was looking through wedding books, trying to figure out what she could possibly want for her wedding. She had no idea where to even begin, knowing this was going to be a long process. She couldn't wait though, couldn't wait for this wedding, couldn't wait for everything to start with Andrew. She wondered if he wanted a family, and if he did, did he want a small one or a large one? She didn't really want a huge family, but a good-sized one would be the perfect fit.

"So Princess, what're you looking at?" Chris said as he pulled a chair from the table, turned it around and plopped himself down on it.

Stephanie pulled the book a little bit closer to her as if trying to protect it, "Nothing, none of your business."

"Oh come on, you're out in the open and that means you're fair game, and I promise not to throw it again," he said, and off Stephanie's suspicious glare. "I swear, and I'm good for a swear, I assure you."

"I don't trust you," Stephanie told him, "what makes you think I'm going to take your word for it?"

"You're just going to have to take a great leap of faith Princess."

"Would you stop calling me Princess," Stephanie said, irritated now. "That's my father's nickname for me, and since you're not my father, I don't think that you have the right to call me that."

"I'm glad I'm not your father," Chris said, "It would make it hard for me to be so attracted to you."

"Now you're just lying," Stephanie said with disgust. "There's no way you're attracted to me. I mean, please, you just want to tease me and string me along. You don't think I haven't seen you with those girls outside the arena, or in the arena for that matter."

"So you've been checking me out."

Stephanie looked indignant, but he just smirked to that. She had been doing it inadvertently. It seemed that wherever she was, he was there. She didn't know if that was something that he planned, just to irk her and make her all the more hateful towards him, and it was probably something he would do. She didn't know Chris all that well, but he was so smarmy and she knew that type. She knew that type well.

"Maybe you're the one checking me out, following me around and all of that," Stephanie said snidely. "Maybe this all falls on you."

"What falls on me Stephanie? This attraction that you're fighting to deny? I've seen the way you look at me, you really can't deny it beautiful, you're attracted to me. It's ok, we can let down that buffoon of yours easily. He'll make it through, as long as he sees you happy with me."

"There is no chance in hell of that happening," Stephanie scoffed. "I'd rather have my fingers and toes cut off than have anything to do with you. You are not getting anything of me, nothing."

"Are you sure that's not going to happen?"

"Never," Stephanie said, "Never, never, never."

"Have a stutter?" Chris asked playfully.

Stephanie just about screamed in frustration. "Why do you love to single me out? I've seen you with other people and yeah, you're an ass, but you're not as much of an ass. I mean, you told me that my boyfriend was going to propose to me! Who does that? Who in their right mind does that?"

"I was trying to give you a heads up in case you wanted to bolt. I wouldn't have blamed you, looking at Test," Chris answered. "I mean, really, I would think a beautiful woman like you would have higher standards."

Stephanie slammed her book shut and stood up. "I do have high standards, and I certainly know well enough not to get mixed up with you. And I think that I'm ahead of the game in that one. If only people knew the real you, they would hate you so much."

"You don't hate me Stephanie," he said to her, quite plainly and without hyperbole. She stared at him for a moment, not saying anything, but she didn't know how to respond. She didn't know why she couldn't answer with something crass, but he was so earnest in saying what he was saying that she literally didn't know how to respond.

"Just leave me alone, or I'll have my brother and my fiancé on it, ok," Stephanie said. "And I mean it, and you've seen the way my brother has been, you've seen the way he acts toward me."

"I thought you hated that."

"I do, but with you, I can make the exception."

"I feel so special," Chris said, placing his hand over his heart. "You're making exceptions for me and everything."

Stephanie clutched her wedding books to her chest and walked out of the room, leaving a smiling Chris behind. She was so easy to rile up and she never showed anyone that side of her, nobody outside her family anyways. She was fiery and passionate, and the image she put out was so wholesome and really quite boring. Everything about her was boring, and Chris admitted that he liked seeing the flashes like he had just seen. He wish they would come out more.

Stephanie's breathing was labored as she walked out, puffing out angry breaths. He made her so very angry that she didn't know what to do with herself. She walked back to Test's locker room and threw down her books, not even wanting to look at them right now. She didn't even want to talk to anyone right now, she just wanted to be alone.

She knew that the best way to get rid of Chris was to just ignore him, but it was so difficult when he was always around, when he was always in her face with that stupid smirk of his, that stupid smile and that stupid gleam in his eye that teased her, that teased her and made her so angry, so angry she almost slammed her fist into the table.

"Hey babe," Test said as he walked inside. Stephanie quickly composed herself as he walked inside, not wanting him to see her angry. It would do no good and she didn't really want to see Test get into a fight with someone so beneath their level. Chris Jericho certainly wasn't worth it.

"Hi," Stephanie said sweetly, patting the seat next to her. "Where have you been?"

"Just hanging around," he responded, looking at the table. "You've been looking at wedding stuff?"

"Just trying to get an idea," Stephanie told him. "My mom and I are really going to talk about it this weekend. I'm just so excited for it, and I hope you are too."

"I am," he assured her, wrapping his arm around her. "Have I told you how much I love you lately?"

"Well I haven't exactly been counting the minutes, but it does seem like it has been awhile and I would sure appreciate it if you would say it right now, just to reassure me of course," said Stephanie coyly.

"I love you," he told her, kissing her gently. Stephanie let herself forget about Chris as she fell into the kiss with Test. Chris Jericho was a peon, a cog in the system and why would she even need to think about him when she had the perfect man.

Her and Andrew were going to last, she could feel it. She felt like she had found the one. She knew that she was kind of young, but that didn't matter because she just knew. They always say you know when you find that one special person that you know you can't live without and she knew that Andrew was that person. He was kind and funny and gentle with her, and he had so much talent, which pleased her father.

She hadn't dated around too much in college, just enough here and there, but nothing that was ever solid like she and Andrew were. He was her first serious relationship, and he would be her last she knew now. As she pulled away, she stared at the ring he had given to her, and smiled again. This was all hers, he was all hers and she felt like she couldn't have made a better match if she had tried.

"I love you too," she whispered genuinely. "You make me so happy, I know that we're going to be happy for the rest of our lives."

Stephanie knew she was getting mushy with him, but she was in that mushiness stage of her relationship. She just wanted to be around him all the time, to touch him and see him and just be there with him. He was her everything, everything. And she wasn't going to trade that in for all the Chris Jericho's in the world. He could go step on a bomb for all she cared.

"I think so too," he smiled, running his fingers through her hair. "I've got to for my match, you wanna come?"

"Of course, but I don't feel like going out with you, is that ok?"

"Sure, you can just walk me over there," Test replied.

He took her hand and they stood up off the couch. He could feel her ring pressing into his hand and he brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her ring finger. Stephanie giggled and sidled up closer to him as they exited the room. They spent the walk there being all lovey-dovey and kissing every now and then. They got to the gorilla and that's where she saw him.

Stephanie turned away from Chris's smirk, that maddening smirk and leaned up to kiss Test, giving it a little extra zing, making sure that Chris saw. She didn't know why she had felt compelled to do it, but it must've been her unconscious need to show Chris that she was for real, that her threats and her words were not merely for his benefit, or her benefit, but that they were real.

Chris could say that she was beautiful all he wanted, but it didn't matter, it held no weight with her. Andrew's words held weight with her, anything he said, she would hear and love, but not from Chris Jericho. His words were like bitter fruit, nothing she wanted a taste of, nothing she wanted to try. She would turn away his words. Then she saw Chris walk over and she narrowed her eyes and scowled.

"I don't think that I got to congratulate you," Chris said, acting polite for once, or for the first time Stephanie thought to herself with a silent chuckle.

"Thanks man," Test answered, thinking he was being for real. He nudged Stephanie and she reluctantly turned to look Chris in the eye.

"Oh yes, thank you so much Chris, I know that you mean that from the bottom of your heart," she said with the slightest twinge of sarcasm in it, just enough for Chris to pick up on it, and for Test to not pick up on it.

"I do Stephanie, I really, really do," he told her, responding in almost the exact same way and she gave him the fakest smile that she could give him, all her teeth showing, like she was a wolf ready to strike.

"I know you do," Stephanie said, "And I appreciate it."

"I know that as well," Chris said, tilting his head and smiling.

"Well…I've got to get out there," Test said, looking funnily between the two of them before giving Stephanie a parting kiss. She slipped him a little tongue, to Test's surprise. She wasn't one for blatant displays of affection. He didn't turn her away though.

When he was gone, Stephanie turned to Chris, "And here you are again…following me?"

"Never," Chris said, "I have a match coming up."

"Uh huh," Stephanie said, not fully believing him, even though she had no excuse not to. "Thank you for being so cordial, but you're such a liar."

"So are you," he said coolly. "Were you trying to make me jealous or something? I mean, that kissing, was that to make me jealous, because it seemed like it was to make me jealous. I didn't want to assume, but the signs were all there."

"Nope, I was just enjoying my fiancé, is all," Stephanie answered. "I can't help it if you love to stare at me."

"I don't LOVE to, but I could learn to love to," Chris told her.

"Oh, yeah, I'd like to see that happening," Stephanie told him. "Try and win me Chris, I would love to see you go about doing that, I would love to see how you would plan on doing that."

"Is that a challenge from the fair Stephanie?"

"I guess it could be, if that's what you want it to be," Stephanie said, with challenge permeating her voice.

"I would love to take a challenge from you, but how do I know this isn't you setting me up?"

"I wouldn't bother going through the trouble," Stephanie answered. "I wouldn't go to so much trouble. At the very least, I'd make my father do it. And he really doesn't like you Chris, not after everything you've said about him, you're subordination is only going to bring you pain."

"Now that sounds like a threat," Chris said. "So which is it Princess? Are you making a threat, or are you making a challenge? Let me know."

"What would that challenge be exactly?"

"I don't know," Stephanie said, and laughed. "I don't know anything with you, I just know that you're a horrible person and I'm still mad you told me I was going to get proposed to."

"Get over it, geez, take a joke."

"Fine, then you have a challenge Chris, you have yourself a goddamn challenge."

"Has anyone ever told you how much fun you are when you get mad? I don't think anyone has because you never let that part out, and you really should because it's way more fun than the little Princess thing."

"So change me," Stephanie said. "I dare you to try."

"You DARE me?"

"Uh huh, you want to act like a child, I'll treat you like one, so I double dare you. In fact, I triple dare you."

"Fine," Chris said, "You've got yourself a challenge."

"I eagerly await your first move."

"Oh you just wait Princess, I'll give you one hell of a first move."


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, I think things are going to start getting interesting soon, so please be patient and please keep leaving reviews. The timeline is going to be a little bit skewed in this story, not too much, but a little bit. Enjoy. :)

* * *

Stephanie was reading again. She liked to read, it provided an escaped from the rigors of her normal life. Her part in the company was growing and with it came more responsibility and when she felt like she was losing control, she would just read. It also calmed her down if things were too hectic, which they had been since her entire engagement. Not that she would trade it in for the world, but sometimes, she just needed to calm down.

There was a knock on the door and Stephanie called out for them to come inside. The door opened and there was a delivery person with a bouquet of flowers in his hand. They were beautiful, a bunch of white lilies in a delicate glass vase, a red ribbon wrapped around the neck of the vase. Stephanie smiled as the man entered and she set her book down and stood up.

"Stephanie McMahon?" he asked.

"Yes, that's me," Stephanie answered, "Are those for me?"

"They most certainly are," the man said, handing them over. Stephanie softly fingered one of the delicate petals.

"These are beautiful, who are they from?" Stephanie asked, knowing that it had to have been Test. He was always doing things like this, romantic things for her, and it was part of the reason why she loved him so much.

"From anonymous ma'am, but these aren't all," the man said and Stephanie took her eyes off of the flowers to look at the delivery man.

"They aren't?" she asked. "And you don't know who they're from?"

"Nope, there's a card on one of the bouquets, I'll try to get my guys to get you that one, but it might be in the very front of the truck and it'll take a while to unload."

"Really?" Stephanie said. "How long?"

"I don't know, they're loading up some now, we actually had to get a trolley to carry them all, someone must really like you," he said.

"Well, my fiancé is always doing stuff like this," she answered. "I wouldn't be surprised if this was all his doing."

"Well, I have to make sure that my guys get all the flowers, so if you'll excuse me," he said. Stephanie nodded as the man walked out of the door.

She looked at the flowers once again. Leave it to Andrew to do something so incredibly sweet for her. He wasn't able to be there tonight because he had had a family emergency, nothing too serious, but he wasn't going to be at the show tonight. This must've been his way to make it up to her and she couldn't believe he would go through all the trouble of finding a florist in the area just to get her flowers delivered.

She was still standing there when two different men came in, each loaded down with flowers. There had to be at least thirty different bouquets and Stephanie was flabbergasted at the spread. Every flower she ever knew was in front of her. Roses daisies, and violets were among some of the different flowers. There were even flowers that she didn't recognize and Test must've bought out the entire store for all of this to be possible.

She just watched stupefied at all the flowers until they were done unloading them all. She was surrounded by flowers of every color and every make and the scent was a beautiful kind of overwhelming. It was like a thick blanket of aroma and she was wrapped firmly in it. She sighed in happiness.

"That's all of them ma'am," one of the men said and Stephanie simply nodded as she was still delighting in the wonderful smell of fresh flowers. She looked around again and gave a little squeal.

"Well, what is all of this?" Chris Jericho's voice cut through her reverie.

"Leave me alone," Stephanie said simply, knowing that wouldn't do the trick, but she had tried everything else and none of that worked, so maybe simply saying that would get him to leave. It didn't…just like she knew it wouldn't work.

"Nah, I just wanted to see this, this is quite the spread you got here," Chris said, touching one of the roses. "I mean, whoever did this, they must really want you."

"Shut up," Stephanie sighed fruitlessly. "This is romance, this is something that someone does for someone they care about. They do things like this, things that make the other person feel special. You wouldn't know what that is I'm sure, I'm sure you're the kind of guy who just sleeps with a woman and then leaves the next morning."

"Why don't we have a little experiment and see if that's the kind of guy I'm like," Chris said with a kind smile. "Let's put that theory to the test."

"I'm sorry, but I believe in a little something called fidelity," Stephanie said, setting the flowers still in her hand down on the table. "I'm not in the business of sleeping around."

"Still a virgin?" Chris asked, surprised. He would never have expected that to be the truth.

"What I have or haven't done is none of your goddamn business," Stephanie spat out at him. "You have no right to ask about my personal life like you were someone who cared about me or deserved to know."

"You're just so pretty when you're angry," Chris said, ignoring anything that she was ranting at him. He had to admit to himself that his words, though said with a modicum of sarcasm were indeed the truth. Stephanie was quite beautiful when she was angry. When she was happy and sweet and innocent, she looked rather dull. Her eyes weren't bright like they were right now, flashing with anger and substance. She didn't look like that little 22 year old girl he had grown accustomed to seeing around Test. Right now she looked like a woman in complete control.

"Why do you say such stupid things?" she asked. "You're just a liar, everyone knows it. I know it most of all because you never leave me to myself. You're always around!"

"I know," he said, "And I wouldn't have it any other way. And you know, you can do better than Test, someone…oh I don't know, with more passion…and who looks less like Mr. Ed."

"So you come in here, you spout off stupid compliments that you think I'm going to fall for, and then you insult my fiancé. Is this your way of trying to change me? Is this your plan? I thought you were better than that Jericho. I thought you were going to show initiative, but I guess I was wrong. I guess my challenge was too much for you."

"Oh don't worry about my challenge Stephanie, I know exactly what I'm doing. And as for insulting Test, just think of that as a bonus. I might as well get as many pot shots as I can while he's not here right. Since you're all alone. Where's your brother to protect you from the Big, Bad Wolf? Or is Daddy the one protecting you tonight?"

"I don't need protecting," Stephanie said, and it was true. She didn't need anyone to help her, she was perfectly capable of that on her own.

"None of the men in your life seem to recognize that fact," Chris told her. "I always thought that you could take care of yourself."

"I can," she asserted.

"I'm not arguing with you," Chris said. "But maybe that's something you want to tell that little fiancé of yours, not to mention the men in your family. I think I like seeing you in control more than anything else around this place."

"And now you're charming me," Stephanie nodded. "See, it's not going to work Jericho, you're not going to succeed, I'm happy with my life, I'm happy with my fiancé, and we're going to be married in like two weeks. That's right, I moved up the wedding, because I want him so much."

"Oh, so is this your way of trying to show me that you are capable of making your own choices? Or your way of making me jealous because you're getting married."

"Neither, I just can't wait to become Mrs. Andrew Martin," Stephanie responded. "The sooner the better. And there's nothing that you can do to stop me Chris Jericho. All your pathetic attempts to change me or to snag me aren't going to work. Face it, it's over, you're done. And when I get married, the first thing that I'm going to focus on is making your life a living hell."

"Wow, I never knew I had such a high place in your life, right after your marriage, I'm stunned," Chris said.

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "Here's the first and only compliment you'll ever get from me. You do such a great job at twisting words."

"Thank you Stephanie, that means a lot coming from you. Hope you have a good time with your flowers, I'm sure that whoever sent them to you cares about you very much."

"ANDREW does care about me very much," Stephanie yelled at him. "He loves me enough to be so romantic!"

"I get it, you don't have to yell," Chris said, poking his head in the door before leaving. He smirked at Stephanie and raised his eyes a little bit. Stephanie took a flower and threw it at him, hearing his laughter wafting through the hallway.

She sat down on the couch, surrounded by her flowers again. She just looked at them all. She loved Andrew so much that she didn't feel like it was possible to love him anymore. She wanted to be wrapped up with him right now. He must've known that she was going to miss him, and done this so that she wouldn't have gone without a little bit of him lingering there.

She remembered that the delivery man had said that one of the bouquets had a card in it. She had forgotten when that asshole Jericho had been in here. Andrew must've wanted to send her a little message and she stood up again, searching amongst the flowers for the one with the card. She glanced back and forth and finally spotted a small pink envelope on a bouquet of beautiful white roses, her favorite kind of roses.

She snatched up the envelope and giggled to herself as she opened the envelope to see Andrew's special message to her. She was expecting it to say something like how he was very excited about their upcoming wedding, or something about how much he missed her and wished that he was there with her that evening. She opened the card happily.

_Your move next Princess._

_P.S. I really do think you're beautiful when you're angry._

Stephanie froze in her place, staring down at the card for what seemed an eternity. She couldn't believe that Chris had sent her all of these flowers, all these beautiful flowers. She needed to sit down and she collapsed against the couch, staring still at the card in her hands. She was too stunned to do anything else.

After all that romance stuff she had spouted off at Chris, after all the words that she had said to him on Test's behalf, thinking he had been behind this wonderful gesture, she found that it was Chris behind it all. Chris had stood there, knowing that he had been behind the flowers that were adorning every inch of her room, and yet he had said nothing, let her believe that it had been Andrew's idea, let her think that her fiancé had done something beautiful.

That perplexed her more than anything. She would've expected him to gloat, to blurt out that it had been him all along and that her fiancé had nothing to do with it. Especially after she had said that it was romantic, she would've expected him to wax on and on about how he was romantic while her fiancé had done nothing, not even called her to see if she was ok. Why would he not take all the credit for this?

She didn't have the answers for these questions, but she just looked up and saw all the beautiful colors. They didn't dull now that she knew who had sent them. They didn't fade away as if they were being washed out with a bucket of white and black. Even though she hated Chris Jericho, this gesture, this MOVE had been masterful because it had actually left her speechless.

She got up, not knowing how, but she got up and she walked out of her locker room. It almost felt like floating because she wasn't actually aware that she was doing it. It was like the scenes surrounding her changed without her feeling it. She ended up in front of the one room she never thought she'd want to go into willingly, Chris Jericho's locker room, or at least the room he was sharing for the night. She knocked lightly and someone answered, but ask her now and she wouldn't know who it was.

"Can I speak to Chris please?" she asked and the person disappeared.

"Back for more?" Chris asked as he came to the door with a smirk in his voice. "Or did the smell of your fiancé's flowers get to be too much for you?"

"Thank you," Stephanie said genuinely.

"For what Stephanie?" Chris asked and she realized that he was fully intending to let Andrew take all the credit for the flowers.

"The flowers, you sent them."

"Oh did I? I must've forgotten that little thing."

"They're beautiful, all of them."

Chris, seeing that she was being quite genuine just gave her a lazy smile, "You're welcome, but it was nothing, just my first move. You just didn't think I was going to let such an opportunity go do you?"

"I guess I underestimated you."

"You did," Chris said. "So obviously I've gotten you down from vitriolic hate down to just hate, I'm starting to finally get somewhere."

"Oh, I wouldn't count on that Jericho, you still disgust me, I just recognize that there might be a bone in your body that isn't filled with cockiness and assholish behavior."

"Well, it's on your plate now Princess. How are you going to stop me from completely enchanting you? I'm going to make you fall into my arms, trust me, I will get you to change from this prissy façade into the woman that I know is underneath."

"Over my dead body," Stephanie told him.

"There she is," Chris said. "I wasn't like that Little Miss Innocent act you were playing up. If that was the reaction to the flowers, then I wouldn't have sent them. Look Stephanie, you challenged me, and I'm going to get you…one way or another."

"We'll see…"


	6. Chapter 6

Stephanie had been fuming for the past couple of days. She could not think of one thing to get back at Chris Jericho. She was so damn intrigued by the little game that they were playing. She almost wanted to see how far Chris would go. She almost wanted to see how this game would play out. But most of all, she wanted to be the one to win. She wanted to show him that he couldn't break through her defenses and "capture" her as he thought of doing.

She wanted to be with Test for the rest of her life. She could close her eyes and picture many happy days ahead. She could picture a life with Andrew, and she liked that picture. Her family liked that picture too, and her family was a big part of her life, they were a big part of her, and she wanted to make them happy as much as she wanted to make herself happy.

That was a big part of why Chris decided to play with her. He thought her family was too much of a factor in her life and her decisions. While she knew that her family could be overbearing at times, she also knew that they meant well. At least, she thought they meant well. But that was besides the point. She had to show Chris that she was devoted to Andrew, that she loved Andrew and that Andrew loved her and that he would be the best for her.

She just didn't know how to do that without telling Andrew what was going on. She knew that she couldn't do that, because this was hers and hers alone. Nothing was coming to her, nothing that she could do to prove to Chris that she and Andrew would make it, that she was not just some challenge to him. She had to prove it to Chris, she didn't exactly know why she was so adamant in that, but she was and she was determined.

"Stephanie, what's wrong with you?" Shane asked as he looked down at her thinking.

"I'm just thinking," she explained. "Is that a crime?"

"No, but you were looking like a zombie or something," Shane told her. "Everything alright? Is it Test? Because if he's trying something that you don't like, I will kick his ass!"

"God Shane, why don't you just mind your own business, this is not about Andrew," Stephanie said. "I have a wedding coming up very soon and I don't think it's a crime to be thinking about that." If she lied, Shane would never know, he was too hot-tempered to ever notice anything that she did anyways.

"Oh," he frowned, still not liking the idea of his baby sister getting married. "Well then, I guess I'll leave you alone."

"Good idea," Stephanie told him snottily. Sometimes she hated her brother so much, but then again, he was her brother, he was bound to do that every once in a while. Or pretty much all the time.

She sat there, expelling her breath as she went back to thinking. Maybe she SHOULD be thinking about her wedding and not about a stupid, silly, little game she had going with someone she knew nothing about. She didn't know Chris, but she wanted to beat him, show him that her life was good enough. This deep-seated desire drove her, and to what extremes she didn't know.

They were in England right now, and she should've been thrilled for the travel, to go someplace romantic with Andrew. She should've wanted to explore everything with the man she loved. But no, she was consumed with thoughts of how she could possibly play Chris Jericho like a fiddle and make him see that she was a force to be reckoned with.

Her opportunity came during the show. The British Bulldog had come into the room and started ranting and raving. Stephanie didn't pay attention to it as she saw him throwing things. She wouldn't be able to tell you why she did it, or why that moment seemed to creep up on her so quickly that even she could've thought of a plausible reason, she wouldn't have had time to analyze it. She stepped in front of that garbage can, though nobody noticed that she had done so.

She was taken to the hospital, although she knew she was fine. Andrew was hovering over her and her family was following, that's what she had heard. She pretended to be groggy and while the doctors were checking her out, she pretended not to remember anything. She could tell that her family was worried about her, and so was Andrew, but that didn't stop her from keeping up this ruse.

She didn't exactly know why she was doing this in the first place. She loved Andrew and she wanted to marry him, but there was so much that she wanted to do first. And this game with Jericho was at the top of the list. Stephanie had lived her life so straightly up until now. She had always done what her parents wanted her to do. She had gone to the school that they wanted, gotten the degree they wanted, and she was just tired of it now. She didn't know why, but Jericho was affording her a little excitement.

For the first time in her life, she was being spontaneous, and doing something that only she wanted to do. She knew that it was at the expense of her fiancé and her family, but for once, it wasn't about pleasing them. For once, she was in charge of her own life and she didn't want it to end. She wanted to see it through and see what would happen. Chris was so different from anyone that she had met before, and she found herself drawn to him, even if she didn't want to be.

"Stephanie, are you ok?" Andrew asked her as he sat by her bedside.

"I'm sorry, do I know you," she lied, knowing that he was going to be hurt.

"It'll be ok," he said soothingly, smoothing down her hair. "I'll make sure that asshole pays for hurting you!"

"I don't know what happened," she said, acting confused. "What happened?"

"Nothing that I won't fix," Andrew said through clenched teeth. "You were hurt, but I'm going to take care of you and make sure that you get better."

"Thank you, I wish I knew who you were."

"I wish you did too," he said quietly and Stephanie frowned a little bit. She knew that this was hard on Andrew and she hated that she was doing this to him. Sometimes she didn't know her own brain. And sometimes she just didn't know why she was so…into this thing with Jericho.

"I'm sorry," she told him, "that I can't remember. I'm sure if I could remember that I'd be very happy with you."

"Well, that's a reassuring thought."

"Can I leave?" she asked. She wanted to go see Jericho, because she knew that he would never come here to see her. And she wanted to show him what SHE had done, and then he would know that she was the winner, that she would win this game with him because she was willing to do anything to show that she was the winner.

"No babe…Stephanie, they said that they should keep you overnight for observation and to check out this amnesia thing you have going."

"Oh, ok," Stephanie said, troubled that she would have to sleep in this uncomfortable bed. "And yourself?"

"Well, I'm going to stay for a little bit, unless you want me to stay all night with you," Andrew told her, sounding hopeful that she would want him to stay.

"Oh…no, you don't have to stay, you'd be uncomfortable here. Go back to…wherever you came from," Stephanie said, still pretending that she had no idea who he was. "I'll be just fine, you can go now if you want to…you don't need to stay with me."

"Well…if you don't need me," Test said, feeling really rejected right now.

"Nope," she said cheerily, putting on the charade. She just need to put on the charade right now. Then when she was better, she could act like nothing happened. Her conscience was not so clear, but her head was trying to rationalize itself.

"Bye then," Andrew said, kissing her forehead. "Feel better alright?"

"I'll try."

He left and she contemplated calling Chris and telling him over the phone, but she couldn't do that. What if on her hospital bill it told the calls. It wouldn't do if they saw that number and traced it to Chris. Wait, did she even know Chris's phone number? She wasn't sure if she did, and she giggled to herself as she thought about actually being forgetful.

Oh well, with that plan down the tubes she settled herself into the stiff bed and grabbed the remote from her bedside. She was in one of the nicer rooms since her father was paying for it and he was very rich. She turned on the television flipping through all the channels, but it was all British and none of the good Britcoms were on right now so she was resigned to the news. That was so boring she had fallen asleep.

She was asleep until she heard footsteps coming to her room. She figured it was the nurse coming to check up on her, take her vitals and all of that good stuff. What she didn't expect to see was Chris Jericho coming to check up on her. She rubbed her eyes a little, seeing if she was correct in what she was seeing and finding she was, she gave a little look of trepidation.

"Can I help you?"

"Heard about that nasty bump you took, thought I'd check up on you, it's what good guys do," he said with a charming smile.

Stephanie didn't smile. "I don't think I need any visitors right now."

"I just thought I'd see how you were doing, no harm in that right?"

"No, I guess not."

"Rumor has it that you have some sort of amnesia, I'm sorry that happened, I'm Chris Jericho by the way. You may not remember who I am, but well…maybe it's better you don't remember who I am actually," he chuckled.

"I know exactly who you are," Stephanie said self-importantly.

"Oh, I guess the rumors were wrong then."

"Nope, the rumors are true, I do have amnesia."

"So what the hell, you got selective amnesia then?" Chris asked as he pulled up a chair next to her bedside.

"No, I don't have amnesia, but everyone thinks I do," she let him in on the little secret.

"And why the hell would you do that? You're getting married in like two weeks, why would you want to feign amnesia and being in the hospital for that?" he asked.

"Because I'm playing a game, and in order for me to win that game, I've got to give you ample time to try and seduce me, and seeing as how you haven't done anything to me yet that I could even construed as a victory for you, I'm going to give you a little longer."

"Putting off your wedding for me Stephanie? Wow, and here I thought you were going to make it difficult for me. This is practically you begging for me."

"No, it's not, now don't you go and think this is anything," Stephanie leaned over the railing of her bed and lowered her voice. "I just wanted YOU to know that I'm not who you think I am."

"You surprised me, I didn't think you had it in you to do something this sneaky. Lying to your family and your fiancé, that's big Stephanie, I'm proud of you."

"What do you have to be proud of me of?"

"I thought that you were a little priss, a spoiled brat, but to see that you're capable of this. Maybe I should just surrender. In fact, you know what, I do surrender."

"What?" she asked in shock.

"I can't top this, you gave yourself amnesia for me, for this, for whatever I was trying to do, I can't compete with that, so I give up. I totally give up to you, you're the queen," he held up his hands in surrender.

"No, no, no," she shook her head. "It can't be this easy. You're definitely up to something."

"How would you know? Do you know me?"

"No…but if you're anything like me Chris, then you'll do anything to get your way, anything to win. I think I proved that to you by doing this, so don't tell me that you're chickening out now."

"We're the same? When did that happen? I thought you were the perfect little daughter, the perfect fiancée, the perfect sister, I thought you were just the perfect, pretty, little Princess. When did that change?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes heavenward. She didn't know when she had changed, or if she had ever changed. Maybe this was who she was all along. Maybe she wasn't like her mother, who she had aspired to be for so many years. Perhaps she had turned out just as she feared, like her father. She didn't want to end up like him, but maybe she hadn't been able to control it.

"It didn't," she told him. "I've always been the same. Maybe I've just been trying to be someone that I'm not."

"Finally I get through to you."

"So is our game really over?" she asked. "Are you really just going to give up? You're going to let me win, let me have the one up on you…that wouldn't do for you would it Chris? Because it wouldn't do for me."

"Stephanie, I'm but a simple man…"

She snorted.

"Why would you tell me the truth about the amnesia?"

"Because I know you'd never tell…good enough answer for ya?"

"You know, I do like this side of you much better than that other side of you. How did you're chipmunk of a fiancé react to all of this."

"Don't bring Andrew into this," she said angrily. "This is between you and me Jericho, and has nothing to do with Andrew. Rest assured, I will still marry him and--"

"Live wonderfully, and have beautiful chipmunk-faced children, I get it Stephanie, you keep saying it and saying it, and I'm just wondering how long you're going to have to say that in order to start to really believe yourself."

"What the hell are you saying Jericho?"

Chris shrugged. "You're not a stupid girl Stephanie, you've gone out of your way to prove that tonight. I'm sure you can figure it out on your own."

"I love Andrew."

"So you say, and yet…you pretend to have amnesia in order to postpone your wedding."

"Because I'm winning!" she said loudly, then covered her mouth in case any of the nurses heard her and came in here to see what the bother was about.

"Wouldn't actually going through with the wedding win it for you?" Chris asked. "I mean, that's the point, to actually get married without me trying to get inside your pants. They are lovely pants Princess."

"You don't get it do you?" Stephanie asked.

"Try me."

"Think of this as an extension. If you can't get at me by the time I get married…and it will be soon, there's only so long I can fake amnesia for goodness sakes. I'm giving you time Chris, that's my move."

"Time is your move?" Now he just plain didn't understand her, but he'd be damned if he admitted that. Although the prospect intrigued him, just like she intrigued him. She was smiling in such a way right now that he couldn't explain. It was mysterious, definitely, and she was like a puzzle, a deep, complex puzzle. She had so many facets that he wanted to explore.

"Yes, time is my move. Sure, if I had gotten married, I would've won, but what's the fun in that. I want to see you whiff Jericho. I want to see you strike out, again, and again, and again…"

"So you're just doing this so that you can see me fail." Stephanie grinned, lying back against the bed, sighing in contentment and putting her hands behind her head. She gazed at Chris.

"You hit it right on the nose…so come Jericho…do your worst…I've got time."


	7. Chapter 7

He hadn't done anything for weeks and weeks. Stephanie had given him all the time in the world to do something, anything, and he had done nothing. She was surprised, but he had said that he was calling the game off because nothing could top her pretending to have amnesia. Maybe he had actually taken to that, maybe she had won and she didn't even know. She gave a little triumphant grin at that and chewed her gum with a little more zest.

Since Chris wasn't going to do anything more in their little game, she had decided the best thing to do would be to go with the wedding. She had proposed to Andrew again, wanting to reassure him that she DID want to marry him. Things were going splendidly and the wedding was set for next Monday night. She was going to become Mrs. Andrew Martin and everything would work out for the better. She would turn out for the better.

At least that's what she hoped. It was hard to think about the wedding right now. For some reason or another, Chris had infiltrated her brain. It wasn't so much that she wanted him, but it was the fact that he DIDN'T want her. She thought the game had been fun, she thought that he would still play the game, try to win her over. But he hadn't done anything of the sort. It seemed he had moved on to other members of her family.

He didn't torment her anymore, seemed he had moved on to other members of her family, namely her father and brother. Chris would provoke them at every turn, mocking them. She hated to admit it though, but she always had to stifle a giggle whenever he called her father Vance. It was just so nice to see someone standing up to her father, whether it be Chris or Stone Cold, or any other person on the roster. Her father could be very controlling, and she hated that about him, and if once in a while, someone got the better of him, she was all for it.

But she disliked the fact that he would rather get on her father and brother's bad sides than her bad side. She thought he was having fun with her, hadn't he said once that she intrigued him? If she was so intriguing to him, why had he ignored her for the past three weeks? She couldn't figure out the answer to that one, and she desperately wanted one. But going to him, demanding an answer, that would just make her seem as weak as they come, and she would rather die than seem desperate in front of him. And hell, she wasn't desperate, she was getting married in one week.

She looked at her mother, who was sitting next to her. "Mom, I don't think that I want a bachelorette party."

"Why not sweetie?" Linda asked.

"I just don't, I wouldn't mind just going out for drinks or something, but I don't really want a party."

"Well, if that's what you want, then we don't have to have one. They're not that big a deal anyways."

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking, I mean, let Andrew have his…whatever thing, and I'm fine just waiting until the wedding to have fun. I can't believe I'm getting married in a week!" She said, excited for herself. "Just one more week and then I'm going to be someone's wife."

"I know," Linda said, grabbing her daughter's hands. "And are you sure you want this sweetie?"

"I'm sure Mom, I love Andrew," Stephanie said. "And I want to be with him. Forever. I know that. Well, I'm pretty sure that I know. I'm not going to get cold feet, I refuse to get cold feet."

"It's ok to get cold feet when you're getting married in a week's time. This is a big step, and I know you're going to be so happy," Linda told her, hugging her daughter.

"I hope so," Stephanie said, taking a deep breath.

"That's why I got you…this," Linda said, reaching for something in her purse and she handed it to Stephanie.

"Mom, you didn't have to get my anything!" Stephanie said, taking the envelope from her.

"I just didn't want you to be overwhelmed this week. Think of this as a getaway before you get married, one last hurrah if you want to think of it that way. Enjoy your last week of singledom."

Stephanie opened the envelope and saw a few plane tickets with the destination as Las Vegas. She laughed as she looked at her mom. A trip to Vegas might be just what she needed. She wasn't getting cold feet, but she didn't want to get them and if she could just relax, then her wedding would be that much more enjoyable.

"Thank you Mom," Stephanie said hugging her again.

"There are three tickets so you can take your friends."

"This is great," Stephanie said. "I'm going to go tell Andrew right now about this, and then I think I'm going to go back to the hotel and pack, then call up the girls and tell them to pack too."

"Sounds good."

Stephanie got up, envelope still in hand as she left the locker room. She hung a right and started happily walking down the hallway, thinking about how it was going to be so much fun going to Vegas and just blowing this week off before she got married next week. She thought about the beautiful wedding dress that was sitting in her room at her apartment and how she only had seven more days until she got to wear it.

She looked up ahead and saw Chris leaning against the wall, talking to one of the Godfather's hos. The girl had her back against the wall and her head was tilted up towards Chris's. He had his hand on the wall above the girl's head and he was leaning in awfully close to her, telling her something. It appeared to be something funny since the girl was giggling and holding her hand over her mouth at something he said.

So he would rather go after glorified ring rats rather than go after her? Well, that was fine, she didn't need this little game anyways. She was getting married and she didn't need to be playing stupid little games with stupid boys like Chris Jericho. She was better off without the distraction. She didn't even realize that while this was going on, she was glaring at him rather intently. Her reverie was not broken until she felt two strong arms wrap around her from behind.

"Hey beautiful," Andrew whispered huskily into her ear.

She tossed her hair aside and turned to look at him. "Hey, I was just about to go looking for you."

"You were?"

"Uh huh," she nodded coyly. "My mom gave me a trip to Vegas."

"You? Not us?"

"Nope," she said sweetly, kissing the corner of his mouth playfully. "It's my last stand as a single woman before I become your wife."

"Sounds like fun, maybe I'll follow you there."

"And spy!" she said, mock indignantly. "Why, I never would've taken you for the spying type Mr. Martin."

"Well, soon-to-be Mrs. Martin, there's always a first time for anything, and I wouldn't want some guy trying to take my future wife back to his hotel room. You're mine and mine alone, and our wedding night is going to be fireworks baby."

She smiled shyly. "It will be. I promise."

He kissed her neck. "I've got a match, you want to walk me to the gorilla?"

"Nah, I've got to call the girls and tell them to pack so we can leave tomorrow," Stephanie said, waving the tickets around in front of him. Andrew made a playful grab for the tickets, but she took them out of his grasp quicker than he could grab them. She slapped his chest lightly and he grabbed her around the waist to kiss her hungrily.

Chris had stopped talking to the girl whose name he hadn't bothered getting. He had ceased talking when he heard Stephanie's distinctive voice. He was now staring at Stephanie as she horsed around with her fiancé. She looked happy and he sucked on his teeth a little at the display. He didn't know whether she was faking or not. Hadn't it been a few weeks ago that she had faked her own amnesia just so that she could get his attention? He didn't know what to make of the youngest McMahon.

Oh well, it mattered not now. He had decided that she wasn't worth pursuing anymore. Let her get married and have that perfect life that she said she craved. He wasn't going to go after that anymore when there were plenty of available woman in the world. Stephanie was fun to tease, but nothing more. He didn't want to deal with her anymore.

The girl in front of him, Brianna, saw that Chris was distracted and was now not talking to her. She reached up her hand and tipped his chin so that he was looking at her again. He seemed conflicted or something and she glanced over to where his gaze had been and just saw Test and Stephanie.

"So Chris, about what you were saying?" Brianna suggested.

"Huh?" Chris said, totally out of it now.

"You know, what you were saying earlier…"

"Oh, sorry," Chris said, seeing Test leave out of the corner of his eye. "Um, how about we continue this later, give me your number and I'll give you a call."

"Promise?" she asked sweetly, batting her overdone eyelashes.

"Uh huh, yeah, sure," Chris said hurriedly. She reached into her purse and pulled out a scrap of paper and a pen, scribbling her cell phone number on it and slipping it into the front pocket of the button-down dress shirt he was wearing.

"Don't forget, you promised."

"I know," Chris said as he walked away without a second glance. Stephanie was staring at something in an envelope. He felt like he was floating towards her. Like there was a magnetic force between the two of them and he was drawn towards her. He snatched the envelope out of her hand like he had snatched the book out of her hand what seemed like so long ago.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Oh, so you're done with that over-priced whore?"

"Catty Steph," Chris said, waving the envelope in his hand. "So I was talking to a girl, what, you jealous?"

She scoffed loudly and tried to grab the envelope, but he was too fast for her. "Like I care who you're screwing."

"It didn't mean anything," Chris said, grabbing the phone number from his pocket and crumpling it up in his one free hand and tossing it on the ground. "She didn't mean anything."

"And what am I supposed to do now Jericho? Swoon? Or more appropriately, puke?"

"I'm not asking you to do either, I just wanted you know that there was nothing going on."

"What do I care," she said, folding her arms across her chest and taking a defensive stance. "I'm getting married in a week, I don't give a shit what or who you do. You can go bed half the country and I wouldn't care. I'm getting married."

"Yeah, and weren't you supposed to get married like a couple weeks ago, but you feigned amnesia to get out of it," he asked her lowly, making sure that nobody else could hear him.

She was seething now. She was so angry that she hadn't noticed how he had backed her up against the wall and was now leaning over her much like he had been leaning over Brianna just a few minutes earlier. If she hadn't been so blinded by her unfounded anger at him she might've noticed their positioning, but all she saw was red when it came to him.

"Yeah, but that's over now. This little thing, this game between us, it's over. It's done because I'm going to marry Andrew next week and that's it, it's done."

"Ok," Chris said, breathing right on her. "I was the one that stopped it anyways, I have no problem with you marrying another man. Don't act like I was your ex-boyfriend or something Stephanie. You were nothing to me."

She steeled herself and pursed her lips. "I'm not treating you as anything but a damn thorn in my side."

"And such a pretty side," he teased, poking her gently in the side.

"Get away from me!" Stephanie said, realizing how close he was to her. She stepped away from him, needing some breathing room.

"Ok," he said, stepping away from her casually. He focused his attention on the envelope in his hand and opened it up, sneaking a peek at the contents inside. His eyebrow raised and he looked up at her. "Making your escape so early?"

"I'm not escaping, it was a gift," she protested.

"Well Steph, I'd be honored to go with you to Vegas," Chris told her. "When are we leaving? I just need a few things. I bet we'll have the best time!"

She snatched the envelope back from him. "You are the LAST person that I would ever, EVER invite with me to Vegas. I couldn't care less if I never saw your ugly face again. Hopefully you piss off my dad and brother so much they fire your ass and I never have to see you again. And once I'm married, you better believe I'm getting Andrew to kick your ass!"

"The chipmunk couldn't get at me if he wanted, I'm the Ayatollah of Rock and Roll, the Paragon of Virtue, the savior of the WWF," he told her, and then leaned in to whisper, "And I can be your savior too if you want."

She shoved him away from her. "Leave me alone Chris, I'm going to Vegas with my friends, not YOU!"

He grabbed his heart. "I'm hurt Steph! And here I thought we were friends!"

Stephanie smirked and pushed him up against the wall. This took Chris by surprise because he wasn't expecting to be so forceful with him. Her smirk slowly turned into a rather sinister looking grin. She took some of his hair and twirled it around her finger. When his hair was wrapped tightly around her finger she pulled him down to her so they were face to face, noses touching.

"You are not my friend, and you said it yourself…I won. If you think you're such a big man and you're going to follow me, we're going to be staying at the MGM Grand, look me up then asshole and see what surprise awaits you."

She shoved him back away from her and she hit him in the arm with the envelope before sauntering off, an extra bounce in her step. She was triumphant and every vibe coming from her body said so. He stared at her, stunned for once, as she walked away. Seriously, that girl had a tiger living inside of her that she just needed to let out. She was still young, hopefully she would figure it out before she became a mousy housewife. She deserved better than that.

"What the hell is going on with you and my sister?"

Chris rolled his eyes and turned to Shane. "Nothing, Boy Wonder."

"That didn't look like nothing. Look, my sister is getting married--"

"You don't say!" Chris said, feigning shock. "I didn't know!"

"She's getting married, so keep your dirty hands off of her," Shane said, grabbing Chris by the collar and shoving him. Apparently, this was the night for Chris getting shoved.

Chris shoved Shane off of him. "I don't know where you think you're coming from man, but Stephanie and I are nothing, so you don't have to worry about your precious little sister getting corrupted by the big, bad wolf. She's going to marry that chipmunk-faced loser and you'll just have to deal with having a rodent in your family, no biggie."

"Stay away from her, do you hear me Jericho, cause if you don't, I swear, it'll be your ass."

Chris took a deep breath to steady his temper as Shane walked away. If it wasn't one McMahon it was another McMahon. He didn't know Linda, but Shane and Vince were horrible people, and the only McMahon he could have a conversation with was Stephanie. He loved to piss her off. He loved to piss off the male members of her family more though, and with that damn threat of Shane's, well, that irked him. Who the hell was Shane McMahon to practically tell him not to speak to Stephanie?

"I'm Chris Jericho dammit, I can speak to whoever the hell I want," he muttered to himself. He was sick and tired of the McMahon family, well, he was sick and tired of Shane and Vince. He didn't think he could get tired of Stephanie. He just loved to see her eyes flare with anger. She seemed almost disappointed that their game was finished.

If only she knew that it was far from finished.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: This chapter is probably boring, but it will get better with the climax in the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews anyways. :)

* * *

"You look so beautiful."

"Mom," Stephanie said, getting a little bit choked up. This was her wedding day and she didn't know how she was supposed to react. She didn't want to ruin her makeup, but she wanted to cry like her mother was starting to do. After a tumultuous courtship and engagement, she was finally getting married to Andrew. She couldn't be happier.

She stood in front of the full-length mirror hanging on the wall. She looked beautiful if she did say so herself; she had to agree with her mother on this one. Her dress was very princess-like, but according to her father, she was a princess and she should be treated accordingly. Her makeup was fresh and perfect and her hair was curled perfectly and framing her face just the way she wanted.

She took a breath, hoping to calm herself. She was starting to get jittery. She was going to be Mrs. Andrew Martin in less than an hour. That was something so huge her mind hadn't even processed it fully yet. She just knew that tonight was the beginning of the rest of her life. She and Andrew were starting something great and she knew that the two of them were going to have a charmed life.

"How are you feeling?" Linda asked.

"I'm doing ok Mom," Stephanie said. "I'm doing as well as can be expected."

"Good," she said. "You're going to be so happy Stephanie, I know you are."

"I hope so," she returned. "I just…I want it to be over with so that I can get on with being married to Andrew. I think that I'll be less nervous once this whole ceremony is over."

"It isn't all easy from here on out, but just enjoy yourself. Enjoy your wedding because, God willing, it's going to be the only one that you ever have."

"It will be," Stephanie said firmly. "Because I know that Andrew is the man for me. I love him Mom, I love him and I want to marry him and be with him. I know that it was rough for a while there, but I know in my heart this is the right thing to do."

Linda hugged her daughter tightly, but making sure not to mess up Stephanie's hair or dress. Stephanie hugged her back, wondering just what the ceremony was going to be like. She wanted it to be perfect. She was a perfectionist, and if things didn't go well tonight, she just couldn't imagine how she would be able to cope. But seeing Andrew would surely calm her down.

"Now, I don't know if you need to hear this, but as your mother…"

"What Mom?"

"The wedding night."

Stephanie blushed deeply, her cheeks turning a furious red that stood out against her alabaster skin. "Mom…"

"I know, I know," Linda said, holding her hands up in surrender. "Just…have fun, be careful and unless you want to get pregnant, take every precaution alright?"

"Mom," Stephanie said again, still embarrassed. "Andrew and I will figure out our own way…or something, I don't know, and I'm starting to ramble because I'm getting nervous. When is this thing starting again?"

"Soon enough," Linda laughed, brushing some of Stephanie's hair over her shoulder. "I think that your father and brother both want to come in and talk to you before we all go out there. They probably just want to give their words of wisdom."

Stephanie groaned. "I hardly think either of them is going to calm me down."

"They won't, I know that for a fact," Linda said, "but still, they're you're family, and they love you and they're going to want to talk to you."

"Fine," Stephanie relented. "There's probably nothing that I could do about it anyways, no matter how much I don't think that I want to see them."

"Just give them this Stephanie," Linda told her kindly. She patted Stephanie's cheek lightly. "I'll leave you alone for a little while to gather yourself. You're going to be very happy sweetie, and your life with Andrew is going to be magical."

Stephanie smiled at her mother's words, but they didn't calm her immensely. She watched as her mother left and she stood there for a moment in her wedding dress, the fabric falling around her. She turned towards the mirror again, listening to the soft swoosh of the fabric against the floor and her legs. She gazed at herself. Her dress was tasteful and simple, nothing too flashy, and she looked at the veil cascading around her face.

"You are going to knock him off his feet," Stephanie said to herself. "Andrew will not know what hit him."

She twirled around a little bit, taking in herself from different angles. She threw a few looks over her shoulder, looking at the back of her dress and making sure that it looked ok. She felt like a little girl playing dress-up. She looked at herself a few more moments before there was a knock on her door.

"Come in…unless it's Andrew, in which case, you can't see me."

Shane stuck his head in the door. "Came to see you."

"Oh, hey Shane…if this is going to end up with you saying something bad about Andrew, I'd rather you leave right now."

"No, nothing like that, I just wanted to tell you how happy I am for you," he told her, walking into the locker room. He went up to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I just want you to be happy. That's all I've ever wanted for you."

"Didn't seem like it."

"Steph, I'm your big brother, it's my job to take care of you, to protect you. That's all I was doing."

"I know Shane, but you should've known that Andrew was a good man. He's a good man."

"I concede," Shane said, wanting to wave a white flag at her. "He's a good guy and I'm glad that you're marrying a good guy. I know he's going to treat you well. I understand that I was an asshole and that it's going to take a while for you to forgive me for it."

"It won't, as long as you know that Andrew is a good guy," she said, throwing her arms around her. "I love you Shane, even when you're overprotective of me."

"I love you too Steph, and you're going to be great out there."

"You act like I have a match."

"You're a McMahon, you're going to just go out there and get yourself married."

"I know," she nodded. "Can I have a minute alone though? I just need to gather my thoughts together."

"Yeah, if that's what you need. Today's your wedding day, you get whatever you want today. And we all want you to feel comfortable. Even Dad."

"I find that hard to believe."

"He does, don't worry about him though, he'll be on his best behavior tonight, and if he isn't, I'll make sure that he's on his best behavior. I don't want him ruining your big day."

"You're a good big brother Shane. Even if sometimes I think otherwise, in the long run, you're a good big brother."

Shane gave her a quick peck on the cheek before leaving her alone. She was alone again. She closed her eyes and took a couple of calming breaths. She smiled, at nothing in particular, but she was smiling because it was her wedding day and nothing more. She heard another knock on the door and figured it to be her father to give her another talk.

"Come on in Daddy," Stephanie called out.

"I'm not your Daddy."

Stephanie looked up sharply. "Get out."

"I just wanted to see you before you took that long, long trip down the aisle," Chris said with a smirk. "I needed to see the blushing bride."

"It's over Jericho," Stephanie told him, folding her arms across her chest. "Whatever game we were playing, whatever happened, it's over. I won, you said it yourself, and so just leave me alone, go screw a girl who actually wants you."

"I will, don't you worry, I plan on screwing the hottest girl I can get my hands on," Chris said, walking up closer to her. Stephanie stood her ground, refusing to give in to his advancing form. She was not going to let him ruin her wedding day. Of all days, she was not going to let him ruin this one.

"Well then go find her," Stephanie said. "What do you want from me Jericho, I don't think I have anything that you want."

"You look gorgeous."

She frowned. "Why are you doing this?"

"What? Now I'm not allowed to tell you when you look gorgeous?"

"You're just saying this to get under my skin. Chris, please, don't ruin this day for me. Any other day, I could deal with you, but this day. This day means too much to me. I'm begging you, from the bottom of my heart, please don't ruin my wedding day."

"I wouldn't dream of doing anything that you would find horrible in the long run."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, her brow furrowing, taking that innocence from her face and turning it into a very shrewd adult. She didn't look like a little girl playing dress-up at the moment. She looked like someone who knew what she wanted and would do anything to get it.

"Nothing," he shrugged. "I just wanted to see how you looked, since I wasn't invited to this little wedding reception you're having afterwards. I thought for sure I'd be invited, but I guess my invitation got lost in the mail, huh Princess?"

"Don't call me that," she snapped. "Of course you weren't invited, you've been nothing but a pain in my ass since the moment you came into this company. You think I'd let you do something to embarrass me at my wedding reception, I don't think so. I wouldn't invite you if you saved my life."

"I might have to do just that," he said cryptically.

"Why are you talking in riddles?" she asked him. "Why are you doing this! Why me!"

"Why not you?" Chris asked. "And you're the one getting in a frenzy over this. I just wanted to see you, you were the one who went off the rails."

"It's my wedding day!" she shouted. "I want it to be perfect, I just want it to be perfect…"

She burst into tears and Chris physically took a step back away from her. He didn't know what to do. He had never seen Stephanie this weak. He thought her such a strong woman, but she was really torn up right now. He went over to her and guided her over to the couch, sitting down with her slowly.

"I'll leave, ok, if that'll make you happy."

"It would," she nodded. "I just don't want you to ruin this for me, I don't know what I did to make you want to do this to me, I'm sorry I don't know why, but I'm sorry for anything I've done to you. Just please, don't do this to me tonight."

"I'm sorry," Chris said, actually feeling remorse for what he had done to her.

She sobbed. "I want a happy wedding!"

"I know, I know," Chris said. "Look, I'm sorry for everything. I won't bother you anymore. You deserve to be happy, I just…I thought that you would be good if you weren't such a goody-two-shoes, but I'll leave you alone, I swear. I won't bother you or Test. I swear."

"Thank you," she sniffled, her breath catching in her throat.

"Yeah, sure," Chris said, getting up. "I won't bother you."

Chris walked out the door and as soon as he was gone, Stephanie stood up and rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe that he had fallen for that. She had perfected that technique over the years. It had served her well when dealing with her father while she was growing up. She wiped away her crocodile tears and twirled around, glad that she had used her wiles to get Chris to leave her alone.

"What a gullible ass," Stephanie said out-loud to herself. "What a joke."

Unfortunately for Stephanie, she wasn't quiet enough and Chris was still right outside of the door. He had heard everything Stephanie had said and he had to hand it to her; she had played him like a fiddle. It was that kind of thing that made her so attractive to him. Why couldn't she be more like that all the time, rather than the shrinking violet she played herself as?

"Oh Steph, you got me this time, but next time, you won't be so lucky."


	9. Chapter 9

Stephanie stood at the gorilla, fussing with the bouquet in her hand. Everything was about to go down, her bridesmaids were walking down the ramp and her mother would be soon after. Then she would go down, on the arm of her father, and walk towards Andrew. He was a good man, a good boyfriend, and he would make a good husband. She tilted her neck a little, straining to try and see out into the arena.

"Nervous Princess?" her father asked.

Stephanie seemed distracted and he tapped her hand. She looked to him. "I'm a little nervous Daddy, but it's nothing that you need to worry about."

"Ok Princess. I just want you to know that everything I've ever done for you, it was to protect you and it was for your own well-being. Now it's Andrew's job to do the rest."

Stephanie gave him a forced smile. She hated when her father tried to justify all the things he had done to her. She hated it even more that her father felt like he was just passing her from his safe haven to a new safe haven. She was an adult; she could handle herself just fine. Yet trying to prove that she was as capable as anyone out there had been an exercise in futility. She talked to her father and he never listened.

"Of course Daddy," she said appeasing him by giving him a soft smile.

Something caught her eye and she looked to see Chris leaning against the wall, watching her. She sent him a death glare, like her eyes could shoot lasers at him. He smirked and sent her a little wave with his fingers. She resisted the urge to flip him off since her father was right there. She was content to just stare at him and then with a flounce of her curled hair, she turned away from him, not wanting to think about him right now. There was plenty of time to think about him later.

The wedding march started and her father started to walk and she followed a half-step behind, up the stairs where she would soon emerge to the arena. Before she disappeared fully behind the magic curtain, she turned and gave one last withering glance to Chris. He caught it and smiled at her, pointing to his ring finger. She groaned silently and put her best face forward as she walked into the arena to the sound of mild applause and a few "aww's."

She smiled at Test as she walked down the ramp. He had a matching smile on his face and she could see the happiness coming off of him in waves. She gripped her father a little tighter by the arm as they were walking slowly. She tried to look proud and regal and like everything a princess should be. She was a Princess in this moment, with her beautiful white wedding gown and her rosy, innocent-looking cheeks. She alighted the steps leading to the ring like she was floating above the ground.

"Are you okay Princess?" her father whispered softly as they were walking up the steps.

"Yes Daddy," she said, giving him a sweet smile that reminded him of nothing more of Stephanie when she was a little girl. She still looked like his little girl, and she always would look like the little girl who had looked up to him when she was just a small child.

"And you're happy?" he asked, just making sure before she took the ultimate plunge.

She paused momentarily, looking at Andrew as she answered, "Yes, I'm going to be very happy by the time the night is over."

They reached the end of the aisle and Vince let go of her arm, letting her walk the few steps to Andrew's side. She gave a small glance to her mother, who already had tears in her eyes. Yes, her mother would probably cry by the time that this was over. Stephanie then turned to look at Andrew, who looked devilishly handsome in his tuxedo.

Everyone was quieting down now as they knew the ceremony was about to start momentarily. They wanted to see this "wedding of the century." Stephanie just hoped that it lived up to all the hype. And after her little thing with Jericho, she was sure that everything would go exactly as she had planned it. She loved Andrew, she loved him so much.

"Who gives this woman to be married?" the reverend asked.

"I do," Vince said, his voice firm. He kissed his daughter on the cheek before going to stand on the other side of Andrew.

Stephanie watched him a moment, thinking about how her father had controlled her for so long before she was set to marry Andrew. He had been a good father when she was little, but then he had changed. He had changed into a shrew businessman, too shrewd perhaps, judging by the number of people who didn't care for him. At one point that had been her; she would never forget him being the Higher Power that had so scared her.

Then there was her brother, standing next to her father, looking rather dashing in his tuxedo. Shane had tried to protect her from Andrew, had tried to protect her from any man that got too close. He was overprotective to the nth degree, to the point where she wanted to strangle him just to get it through his thick skull that she wasn't a little girl anymore.

Maybe getting married would prove that. Maybe she'd finally be able to prove that she was an adult, capable of making her own decisions and her own life choices. Lord knew that they needed a slap to the face to realize that. She understood she was the youngest, but they had to understand she was in her twenties now and certainly capable of being anything that she wanted to be.

And she knew exactly who she wanted to be.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are gathered here today to witness the joyous union of Andrew Martin and Stephanie McMahon," the reverend began as Stephanie fought to pay attention to what he had to say.

"Today is a day that should be emboldened by joy and happiness and especially the happiness of Stephanie and Andrew who are to be joined today in holy matrimony. Is there anyone here that would like to oppose this marriage, if yes, speak now or forever hold your peace."

Stephanie looked around, hearing a few joking shouts from the crowd, but nobody in the immediate area seemed to even breathe, let alone anything. She looked to the ramp a moment, expecting that some insubordinate wrestler would make his way out there and ruin the entire thing, not just for her, but for Andrew as well. But nobody came out and she was slightly relieved. She wanted no hitches, none, zero…nothing.

"Ok, then I shall continue," he said. Stephanie and Andrew, do you both enter this marriage of your own accord?"

"Yes," Stephanie replied first, gazing adoringly at Andrew.

"I do too."

"Then may we please have the rings," the reverend inquired. Shane came forward and placed the rings on top of the Bible that he had been holding. He brought the Bible back to him and then said, "Stephanie, if you will take the ring."

Stephanie was about to take the ring when a countdown went off, bathing the entire arena in darkness. She dropped her hand as she turned towards the ramp and saw him posing there, arms outstretched. The murmuring of the crowd got louder and louder until it was a din of noise.

"What the hell?" Andrew said loudly. "Vince!"

"I don't know what this is," Vince said. "What the hell is he doing out here!"

"I'm going to kick his ass!" Shane said, already starting to roll up his sleeves.

Stephanie remained speechless as the arena lit up again, revealing the smirking Jericho to the crowd. The crowd was a mixture of boos and cheers, but mostly cheers. Not that they hated the wedding, but they wanted something action-filled and this was certainly it. Chris paced the top of the ramp for a few moments, a microphone in his hand. Stephanie had turned to him completely now and she looked puzzled.

Chris stopped in the middle of the ramp and flipped his hair over his shoulder before bringing the microphone up to his lips. "You look beautiful Stephanie, I don't think I got to tell you that earlier."

Stephanie grabbed the microphone from the stand that the reverend had been using. "What the hell Jericho!"

"I just said you looked beautiful."

"How dare you interrupt this!" Vince said, grabbing the microphone from his daughter. Stephanie gaped at him, not believing that he wouldn't let her handle this. It was HER wedding, not her father's wedding and yet somehow, he had gone and taken control again. Typical behavior and she was so damn sick of it. So fucking sick of all of it.

"Now Vince, I thought we were all invited. Isn't that what the delightful little invitation said? I'm just following that. I just wanted a front row seat to this little shindig."

"Get out of here," Vince warned.

"Why don't you let Stephanie talk, it's her wedding right?" Chris said and Stephanie stared at him a moment. He winked at her. She just stared at him, nothing more, nothing less, just stared, like she didn't know exactly what to do.

"I know my daughter, she wants you out of here," Vince said. "Get out Jericho, or you're fired."

"I don't think you're going to get the chance," Chris answered, turning towards the Titantron. "Last week, Stephanie went to Las Vegas for her bachelorette party. Roll the footage monkeys."

The screen turned fuzzy and then suddenly, there was a hand-held video camera showing the ins and outs of Las Vegas. Stephanie was standing in front of the camera and she was smiling at it. She made some funny faces, flipping her hair all about and acting like she was a model on some fashion shoot.

"So what do you want to do?" the voice from behind the camera said.

"I think you know," Stephanie answered, licking her lips a little bit. "You gonna get me drunk?"

"You mean drunker right?" the voice asked.

"I'm not drunk Chris," Stephanie said, narrowing her eyes. "I had a few yes, but I'm hardly drunk."

"You're as drunk as a skunk," Chris said, still from behind the camera.

"I am not!"

"So what do you want to do?"

"I want to get married," Stephanie said to the camera, making puckering noises. "I want to get married over and over and over again."

"I don't take advantage of drunk women," Chris told her.

"Can drunk women take advantage of you?" Stephanie said, coming closer to the camera. "Turn that damn thing off Chris and let's go somewhere a little bit more…marriageable."

"Is that even a word?"

"I don't--" The video cut out there and Stephanie gaped wide-eyed at it. She turned to Andrew. "I was drunk, I didn't know what I was doing. He took advantage of me! He took advantage of me!"

The footage kept rolling and suddenly they were at a wedding chapel and Stephanie was standing at the altar, obviously a little wobbly. Someone else was filming as she and Chris slipped rings on their fingers and he leaned in to kiss her as they were pronounced husband and wife. They were then shown walking down the aisle and Chris smirked towards the camera.

"So you see Vince…I don't think I'm going to leave just yet. Am I Stephanie?"

Stephanie, who had been sobbing during the whole thing turned to Andrew. "I didn't know! I didn't know!"

"I'm going to kill you Jericho!" Andrew screamed. "Don't worry Stephanie, we'll get this annulled, we'll get married."

"Stephanie, it'll be alright," her father assured her. "I promise I'll take care of this. I'll take care of Chris. He won't ever touch you, I swear to God, he won't ever touch you." Vince turned to Chris. "How dare you take advantage of my daughter when she's drunk. Who the hell do you think you are doing that you bastard!"

"I swear to God Jericho, I'm going to kick your ass," Andrew yelled, holding the still sobbing Stephanie. She was clinging to him for dear life, her mascara running down her face as she felt her knees give way beneath her.

Shane grabbed the microphone from his father. "Prepare to die."

Shane stalked down the ring, but right before he was about to step out, a hand shot out. He turned and saw Stephanie and she shook her head. "I need to take care of this Shane."

"Stephanie, no, I'm your big brother."

A calm smile came over Stephanie's face and she shook her head again. "Shane, this is one I need to handle on my own."

"Fine," Shane said, angrily stepping back.

Stephanie took the microphone from her father and turned to Jericho. "So Jericho, are you saying that you and I are married?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying babe," Chris said, leering at her.

"Legally?"

"I have the papers right here, both our signatures. And trust me, I didn't forge yours. You have such pretty penmanship."

"She's getting it annulled!" Andrew interjected.

Stephanie turned to him. "Now, now Andrew, let's not be too hasty and jump to conclusions okay? Let's find out what Chris wants and then we'll figure out what to do, and see if an annulment is in the works."

"Stephanie…"

She held a hand up, getting him to stop speaking. "You know what your problem is? Not yours Andrew, but Daddy, Shane, you know what your problems are? You control me. You love to do it. You control me and you feel like you can dictate my life. The moment, the second that you approved of Andrew Shane, it was all buddy-buddy and you were happy that there'd be another man to protect me. But I don't need protecting. I can do things on my own. I can get rid of Jericho on my own."

"Stephanie…this is neither the time nor the place," Vince hissed at her.

"Oh, it's exactly the time AND the place," Stephanie said, ripping the veil off of her head. "This was a lovely wedding, really," Stephanie told them. "Perfect for a Princess. But you didn't ask the Princess what she wanted. You just controlled me…for the last time."

Stephanie threw down the microphone and glared at all the people in the ring before she started walking down the steps. Andrew grabbed the microphone off the ground and yelled, "Stephanie where are you going?"

"I have a husband waiting for me," Stephanie smirked, walking backwards up the ramp with a smirk on her face. "Wouldn't want to keep him waiting."

Stephanie turned then and marched up the ramp towards Jericho, leaving her stunned family and former fiancé in her wake. Chris opened up his arms to her when she reached him and she hugged him, then let him dip her down and kiss the life out of her. She wrapped her arms around him to steady herself and kissed him back before being pulled up to a standing position.

"Thanks," Stephanie whispered to him where nobody could hear.

"My pleasure, let's get outta here."

"Yeah, out of here."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Italics are flashbacks. Enjoy the chapter and thanks for the reviews. :)

* * *

_Chris stood in Stephanie's doorway as she opened the door and saw his face. She rolled her eyes and was about to shut the door in her face when he held his hand up to stop her. She wanted him out of here, but another part of her was intrigued. After all, he had flown all the way to Vegas to see her, so she could at least hear him out. So she left her door open, letting him decide what he wanted to do._

"_You're not throwing me out, I'm shocked," he said sarcastically._

"_What's the point?" she asked, "You'd probably just camp yourself outside my hotel room until I finally let you in, so I decided to save us both the trouble."_

_  
"Well, I'm glad you think the way you think because I had my sleeping bag in my rental car," Chris joked._

"_Ha," she said, not amused. "So tell me whatever it is you want to tell me, hit on me, do whatever you want to me, and then you can leave and I can enjoy my last weekend of freedom in peace."_

"_I think it's a little more complicated than that," Chris told her._

_She folded her arms in front of her. "Look, it's over, you said it yourself. So why are you here bugging me?"_

"_You invited me."_

"_I didn't think you'd show up…shows how much I know right?" she said sarcastically._

"_Did you really think I'd pass up the opportunity."_

"_I didn't figure you for the needy bastard, not after that chick you were talking to last week, what was her name? Ditzy McSlut?"_

"_You know, this is what I like about you," he told her, sitting down on the couch as he observed her across the room, sitting at the table. "I like that you can insult with the best of them. Makes me kind of sad that you have to hide who you really are behind this little Princess façade you've got going."_

_  
"What the hell are you yammering about Chris?"_

"_What am I yammering about? I'm talking about who you really are Stephanie. Don't you ever get tired of being this perfect little angel?" he asked. "Don't you get tired of being what Daddy and big brother want you to be? I mean, you're marrying this Test guy, and he's going to treat you the same way, as if you're fragile."_

"_So…I love him," she pointed out._

"_Sure you do," Chris laughed. "Like I would love dandruff if it suddenly appeared in my gorgeous head of hair."_

"_If it's not already there," she mumbled. "But where do you get off Jericho? Where the hell do you get off telling me if I love someone or not? Last time I checked, you weren't me, and you weren't one of my best friends."_

"_Because you and I…we're more alike than you'd think Stephanie, I think that we could be good together, if you'd give me half a chance."_

_  
"Ha!" she guffawed. "I don't think so."_

"_So you're telling me that you want this life that's been planned out for you. You want your father and your brother to control you for the rest of your life. What about this whole Higher Power thing with your father, how did that make you feel?"_

_Stephanie quieted for a moment before speaking, her voice clear and dry. "Don't you bring that up, don't ever bring that up."_

"_Stephanie, I'm here because I can give you what you want."_

"_You have NO idea what I want!" she snapped, standing up again and going to the door, opening it. "Just get out Jericho. This conversation is over and you've embarrassed yourself enough. I don't know why you feel the need to follow me, but our little game is over, you lost, I won. So get the hell out of here before I call security."_

_Chris got up and went to the door, but he didn't exit. He just stood in front of Stephanie. "You want it all don't you Princess."_

"_Don't call me that," she demanded. "You have no goddamn right to call me that."_

"_Fine, Stephanie," he said derisively. "Look, I'm here because I want to make you a proposition."_

"_No," she told him. "Look, I already knew the answer."_

"_Just hear me out. It would be mutually beneficial."_

"_If you think that I'm going to have sex with you, you're severely mistaken."_

"_Nothing like that," Chris said, but then looked down at her low-cut top. "Although if you want to throw that offer out on the table, I will not hesitate to snatch it up, only if it's on the table though, I'm not into taking a girl against her will."_

"_It's most definitely NOT on the table."_

"_You want power don't you?" _

"_What?"_

"_Power, control, that's what you want. You don't want to be controlled, you want to be the one in control. I can give you that."_

_Stephanie tilted her head back a little. "Go on, I'm listening."_

"_Ahh, there's a good girl," he told her. "I knew that you were a lot more shrewd than anyone ever gave you credit for. If we help each other, I can assure you that you will be in control of the entire WWF."_

"_How the hell can you insure that?"_

"_Because you won't be under the controlling thumb of your father silly. That's all there is to it, we get you away from your father."_

"_Oh, and how are we going to do that?" she asked. Chris didn't make mention of the fact that she was now using "we" instead of singling either one of them out. That had to be a good sign._

"_You marry me."_

_Stephanie had never laughed louder in her life, but this time, she was laughing loud and through her whole body. She clutched her stomach as she looked at Chris in disbelief. "Are you crazy? What kind of freaking plan is this? Marry you? I'd rather lock myself into someone's basement for the rest of my life rather than marry you."_

"_This is the only way Stephanie. Think about it, if we're married, then you're father cannot control you because he can't control me like he can control Test, and don't even tell me that he can't control Test."_

"_Andrew isn't controlled by him."_

"_And how willing was Andrew to go along with whatever your parents wanted for this wedding?" Stephanie remained silent which gave Chris all the answer he needed. "I think that answers that question."_

"_But still, married? And what would be in it for you? Again, is it sex, because I'm not giving that to you," she told him sternly._

"_I didn't say I wanted sex Stephanie, what's it with you and sex, are you that desperate to get a taste of Y2J, if that's really the case, the bedroom seems to be right through there," he said, pointing to an open door._

"_Then what do you want?"_

"_The belt, that's all. I want the belt. I was in WCW and they told me that I was too small to be the champion, and you know what, that was not to my liking. So I ended up here, and I want the title, and what better way to get to the title than get to the boss's daughter. That's what I want. We get married, you get power, I get the belt, and you can go off and sleep with whatever guy you want to, I don't really care, because I'm not going to be Mr. Faithful to you."_

"_So it'd all be a business arrangement then? A sham of a marriage?"_

"_I guess if you want to look at it like that. But I prefer to think of it as a mutually beneficial union of two people who want similar things," he said cheekily. "Isn't that just a much better way of putting it?"_

"_Why would I give up real love for fake love?"_

"_Because you are one-of-a-kind Stephanie, and something tells me that you would value power over love any day of the week. In fact, I'm banking on it. I say that we make this game us against everyone else. Let's see what we can do to make everyone else lose."_

"_Power huh?"_

"_Power," Chris echoed. "And all I want is the belt, that's it, not even your body, although if you were to throw that in, I'd have no protests."  
_

"_You're not getting my body Chris…but you can have my hand in marriage."_

"_Wait, so you're agreeing?" Chris had not expected this. Truth be told, he thought she would laugh in his face and forcefully throw her out of her hotel room. Chris had just wanted to play this up to her, make her think that he was serious, and joke around with her, and play their game to the finish. But she was actually agreeing to him, and this was a pleasant surprise._

"_What? Have I shocked the great Chris Jericho? I thought that you would know by now that I'm not what I seem."_

"_I should've known, but you're in?" he asked again._

"_I'm in…so come on, we've got work to do…"_

"That was great!" Stephanie gushed as she and Chris hopped into their limo. They hadn't risked it right after the failed wedding and had high-tailed it backstage and out to the parking lot where their limo had been waiting anxiously for them. "Did you see my brother and Dad's faces after we kissed, priceless!"

"You should've seen their faces when you were walking up to me," Chris told her, feeling a rush of adrenaline coursing through his veins. "It was hilarious."

"That was so much fun," Stephanie said. "I never knew defying them would feel so good."

"I told you."

"Oh Chris, thank you," she said, throwing her arms around him. "I never would've had the courage to do that if it weren't for you. I never would've gotten out from under their control. Oh man, I feel so free."

"You know, you have all the freedom in the world with me," Chris told her honestly. "You are free to make your own choices and do whatever the hell you want to do."

"I know, thank you," she said, hugging him again and kissing him on the cheek. His skin felt warm where she had kissed him, and it inexplicably stayed warm long after her lips had gone away. "You've given me more than anyone has ever given me. Thank you for coming to my hotel room."

"Come on, let's get to our own hotel room, two beds of course, and you can change out of that wedding dress."

"Yeah, I do feel slightly overdressed," she joked, looking down.

"So you don't regret what happened with Test?" Chris asked her. Stephanie hadn't much mentioned Test in their discussions. She looked down at her hands, and he could see her taking a few deep breaths, as if trying to calm herself down.

"I don't know," she answered, her voice quieting and losing the enthusiasm it had had a few moments before. "I don't know what to think about Andrew right now."

"You know, once I get the belt, we can get this annulled and you can marry him. We both know that this is not a forever type thing. You can still see him even, if that's what you want. I'm not going to hold you back. This was just for your father and brother, not for Test too."

"If I wanted to be with him, I mean really, really be with him…I wouldn't even contemplate staying with you, but that's exactly what I'm doing. I'm staying married to you, and not even for love, because I don't love you—"

"And I don't love you," he interrupted and she nodded.

"Yeah, and if I loved Andrew, then I would do anything to be with him, and I'm not."

"Well, if that's what you feel."

"I wouldn't have married you if I loved Andrew enough, I'd be married to him right now," she said, assuring herself of her intentions. "Its fine, we just weren't meant to work out. It was kind of a whirlwind thing anyways. No big deal."

"I'm not going to restrict you from seeing anyone Steph."

"I know," she told him, smiling. "But for now, we have to keep up this charade. We have to act like the ultimate married couple. We have to play the part or nobody is going to believe us. Oh God, what are we going to say next week? Everyone is probably going to expect us to explain ourselves."

"We have a whole week to think about that," Chris pointed out. "Let's just enjoy how much fun tonight was and worry about the rest later. Did you pack all of your things from your apartment that you wanted?"

"Yeah, it should be arriving at your house tomorrow, that's what the movers said."

Stephanie was moving into Chris's house while they were staging being married. They knew they were going to have to work hard to pull this off. So the most logical thing to do was have Stephanie move in with Chris in Florida. She only had a small apartment in Greenwich, so she didn't have to pack up too much. She was going to move in with Andrew anyways, so now she was just moving a little farther away."

"My father is going to want to kill you," she pointed out.

"Yeah, I welcome it. Your brother too, he's been a gigantic pain in the ass since I started here, telling me that I couldn't even talk to you. Well I guess he's shocked now that we're brothers. Hey, maybe we should call them out to the ring next week, that way we can see them face-to-face."

"Oh, I like that," Stephanie said, smirking mischievously. "I really like the way you think Chris."

"I told you that we were alike."

"Yes, and I guess you were right, I just needed to be shown the way."

"And we'll rule over WWF soon enough."

She rubbed her hands together. "Oh, I can't wait. And then everyone is going to know that Stephanie McMahon is the most dominant figure in the WWF today."

"McMahon-Jericho," Chris corrected.

"Oh of course, McMahon-Jericho."

"I hope everyone is ready for us."

"Oh they won't be…but we'll make them see the light. The McMahon-Jericho marriage is going to rule all."

"Oh, before I forget," Chris said, reaching into his pocket.

Stephanie watched him carefully as he pulled something out of his pocket. She observed him as he took her hand and she looked up at him curiously. He slipped the cheap wedding ring they had bought together last week on her finger. She gave him a lop-sided smile as she wiggled her fingers around. Then he plopped something in her hand and she saw it was her ring for him. She laughed and picked it up. Then she slipped it on his finger.

They were really, truly married.


	11. Chapter 11

"So what are we going to do later?"

"I'm not sure yet, I mean we have to do something," Chris said. "We can't do what we did last week and not do something."

"My dad has been trying to contact me," Stephanie informed him. "But I haven't answered. I figure I should just let him stew for a bit. He deserves it after everything he's done to me. You know, I bet you that he still thinks that I didn't have anything to do with this. I bet you."

"How much would you bet me?" he asked, indulging her.

"Dinner," Stephanie said. "If I'm right, you buy me dinner, and if you're right, then I buy you dinner. Sound good?"

"Sounds great," he told her. They were hanging out in their joint hotel room before having to go to Raw. They didn't know how they were going to follow up what they had done last week. It was always difficult to pull a stunt like they had and then come back the next week and expect to shock everyone again. But Chris and Stephanie sure as hell wanted to try.

"Awesome," she said, a more than a little giddy. "They're gonna hate me you know?"

"Who?"

"Everyone," she answered. "My family, my friends, the audience. I mean, you're not that well-liked Chris, face the music."

"I am the Paragon of Virtue, I'm single-handedly here to save the WWF, how can you even insinuate that the fans don't love me? They adore me, they worship the ground that I walk on, they're all loyal Jerichoholics."

"You get booed in every arena we go to," she responded smugly.

He frowned. "They don't know what they're thinking about. I forgive them though, they lack the clarity, that I, Chris Jericho, the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla, have. They're just jealous, and now everyone is going to be even more jealous because I'm married to you."

"You think people would be jealous?" she asked. "I mean, really? That you were married to me?"

"You obviously don't know how beautiful you are," he told her, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. She rolled her eyes.

"You're a little too late in the seducing now that you've told me the true reason why you wanted to marry me. It takes the entire mystery out of our relationship."

"We have a relationship?"

"Well, what the hell would you call this thing between us?"

"A deal of mutual benefit," he said in a smart-ass tone.

"Come on," she said. "We have to get to the arena. And remember, we have to show a untied front. We have to act like we're really married. I'm not saying that we have to like fawn all over each other, but we cannot look like this is a business deal."

"Yeah, but isn't everyone under the pretense that I married you while you were drunk?" he asked.

"Yeah, but I think the kiss we shared at the top of the ramp was a pretty definitive statement on the actual status of our relationship, at least what we'd have people believe about our relationship," Stephanie answered. "Or I can lie and say that I may have been drunk, but that afterwards, I changed my mind. Don't worry about it."

"I'm not worrying about it," he protested, then smirked. "Besides, I know just how good a liar you are, and I have complete faith that you will lie your ass off tonight."

"You bet I will," she told him decisively.

They left their room then and headed down for the show. The drive was short and not filled with an exorbitant amount of talking. They were both thinking of what needed to be done when they got to the show. They both knew that there were going to be a lot of confrontations, and probably not fun ones either. Unless they decided to have fun confrontations. She smirked at the idea.

She dreaded seeing Andrew a little bit though. She had loved him, at least on some level, and she had wanted to marry him, again, at least on some level. She imagined that he was a little hurt. She hadn't time to explain herself, and she and Chris had fled the arena last week with haste. They didn't want to risk running into someone, but tonight, she was going to have to face him. She was going to have to look into his face and lie. It would be hard, but necessary.

"Don't tell me you're going soft on me already?" Chris said glancing at her as they pulled into a parking space.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she denied vehemently.

"Look, I told you this last week and I'll tell you again. I'm not going to stop you from seeing anyone. If you want to let a chipmunk, I mean, Test, in on our little secret, go right ahead, as long as he can keep it a secret. You can go sleep with him if you want, I don't really care."

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, and Chris couldn't figure out why that made her so uncomfortable. She shrugged a little bit. "I don't think he'll be too happy with me if I tell him that I married almost a complete stranger because I wanted to get back at my father and brother."

"Well, when you make it sound like that, of course it sounds shitty," Chris told her with a laugh. "You wanted the power Stephanie, nothing wrong with that. Don't worry about it, we'll make sure that your brother and your father pay."

She nodded resolutely. "I don't want Andrew anymore, I've decided that. It's no big loss. I mean, I can start a new life. And I want my father and my brother to go down. Down big time."

"Thatta girl," he said, patting her knee as he got out of the car. He jogged around to the other side and opened the door for her. She was a little surprised at the gesture, but she shouldn't have been, Chris had been doing that all week long as she stayed with him. Maybe he was feeling a little guilty or something, but it had been partly her decision to do this in the first place so he had no reason to be upset over it.

"Thanks," she said, getting out of the vehicle. As they walked up to the arena, Stephanie snuck her hand into Chris's and he looked shocked by the gesture. His eyes flitted up her body to meet with her gray-blue ones and she shrugged a little. "Gotta keep up appearances after all. Full stop right?"

"Full stop."

They walked into the arena, and they were suddenly descended into a world of staring and awkward whispering. Neither Chris nor Stephanie was stupid enough to actually believe that they whisperings weren't about them. They weren't idiots by any means and after what happened last week, they knew that they had to be the talk of the entire company. Chris didn't know how Stephanie would react, but he soon found out as she jutted her chin out proudly and walked around like she owned the joint, which she kind of did.

Chris was definitely impressed by the amount of confidence that Stephanie had. Here was the woman that he had seen time and time again, but then had seen fade time and time again. She needed to look like this all the time, not just when you got her heated. She was not a woman who should be behind a man, she was a woman who should be front and center at all time. He gave her hand a squeeze and she looked over at him curiously.

"What?"

"I knew you had it in you."

"Had what in me?"

"All of this," he said, gesturing up and down her body with their clasped hands. "This. All of this."

"Is that a compliment?" she asked haughtily. "Are you complimenting me?"

"You're my wife, I'm supposed to do that."

"And suddenly you're a marriage expert, after having been married for all of…a week," she told him.

"Yes, I am," he told her with a smarmy smile. "Can I not compliment you? Is that wrong of me? Should I rescind it?"

"No, of course not, you were just stating the truth."

"Stephanie…"

Stephanie looked up and saw Andrew in front of her. She looked down immediately and wanted to let go of Chris's hand desperately, but he kept it firmly in his. Chris stared at her, and saw her receding back into that woman he despised. He squeezed her hand and she looked at him. He told her with his eyes that she was above this, that she was incredible and she didn't need him. She wondered if that were true, but she held her ground.

"Hello Andrew," she said shortly, secretly hoping he would just go on his merry way.

"I've been trying to reach you all week," he told her sullenly.

"I discontinued my phone service in Connecticut," Stephanie responded. "I had my number switched to Florida, which is where I live now…with my husband."

"Can we talk?" Test asked, looking pointedly at Chris.

"Whatever you have to say to me, you can surely say in front of my husband. We're a team now, and what you have to say to mean includes him because we don't keep secrets from each other," she answered, looking adoringly at Chris. He raised an eyebrow as she leaned against him, playing it up for Test. Again, he was just so impressed by her.

"I don't think I want to do that," Test told her.

"Then you really don't have anything to say to me," she snapped. "What do you want to hear Test? What is it that you NEED to hear?"

"In case you forgot Stephanie, since you're SO into your new marriage, WE were supposed to be married last week! We were in the middle of our wedding and suddenly you're married to another guy. He got you drunk and married you!" Test yelled at her.

"Or was I?" Stephanie snapped. "Don't presume to know my motives."

"Were you cheating on me?" he asked. "Have you been cheating on me?"

"That's not any of your business," Stephanie said firmly. "What happened is in the past. Deal with it, get over it. I am."

"How can you do this to me?" Test asked. "I loved you, I wanted to marry you. We were in the middle of our wedding. Didn't that mean anything to you? Didn't we mean anything to you?"

"Well, yeah, it did mean something to me," Stephanie answered, her voice soft. Chris thought she was going to confess right now. He thought she was going to break down. "It meant that I was finally free of someone like you. Face it Test, we were not good together."

"We were so good together, how can you say that?"

"You just THINK that we were good together," Stephanie told him, getting angry now. She just wanted him to leave her alone. She needed him to leave her alone. He was honestly starting to bug her now.

"But we were!"

"Look man, if she said that you weren't, listen to her," Chris interjected, his first time being an active participant in the conversation.

"This is none of your goddamned business!" Test snapped at him. Chris took a step forward, but Stephanie pulled him back to her side.

"It IS his business," Stephanie said, sticking her left hand out. "I'm married to him."

"Yeah, she's married to me," Chris repeated. "So that means she's my wife, and I don't like the way that you're talking to her."

"Oh where the hell do you get off?" Test said, turning to him. "You're married to Stephanie for a week, you think you know her? You don't know anything about her!"

"And you think you do!" Stephanie yelled. They were starting to draw a little crowd, but none of them really cared. "You didn't know me either!"

"Stephanie, we can work this out! If you just leave this jackass, we can get back together, I swear to God, it'll be okay, just come back."

"I faked the amnesia," Stephanie told him, giving him a lazy smile. Test's face dropped…hard. "I never had any freaking amnesia. I was barely hit with that garbage thing. I faked it, all of it."

"Why would you do that?" Test asked heartbrokenly.

Stephanie turned to Chris, running her perfectly manicured hand down his face. She leaned up to give him a slow, deep kiss, her tongue sneaking its way into his mouth. He responded to her kiss, more because he found her boldness to be hot than because she was putting on a show. She pulled away, licking her lips enticingly, then biting her lip ever so softly.

"Because I wanted to give Chris a chance to get me," Stephanie said, turning to Test. "He knew I didn't have amnesia. It was a little…game we were playing."

Test stared between the two of them. "You mean…he knew. You faked amnesia, but…he knew?"

"That's right," Stephanie said with a bright smile. "Now does that answer your question on whether or not I'd take you back?"

"It was pretty clear baby," Chris said, hamming it up to the highest degree. Stephanie leaned herself against him and sighed, and he had to commend her spectacular acting skills.

"Good," she said to Chris. "So Test, why don't you just mosey along now and go find some other girl who might want to look at that face for the rest of their life, because I sure as hell don't want to wake up to that every morning."

She brushed past Test as she pulled Chris along, leaving the fuming Test behind her. He was pissed off at the two of them, but mostly Stephanie. He had really loved her, and he had been so happy to marry her. She had told him that she loved him, and now he knew it had all been a lie. She didn't love him. She was a heartless bitch, and he now saw her for what she truly was. But somehow, he still loved her.

"You okay?" Chris asked as they were out of earshot of everyone.

"Yeah, perfectly fine."

"Are you sure? That had to be a little bit hard."

"Actually," Stephanie paused for a moment, then shook her head, "actually, it wasn't that difficult at all. I think that in all of this, I think that Test was part of the problem as well. I think that he definitely played a part in all of this. He kept me the way that I was. He helped keep me that way."

"And now?"

"Well now he's not part of the problem is he?"

"You know, I don't know how nobody else figured out how in control you could be of everything. How in the hell was I the first person to realize that you weren't some goody-two-shoes?"

"I guess I was just good at what I did, which was lie myself into being someone that I'm not. I'm so not that girl. I don't think I can be her again…and I have you to thank."

"No thanks necessary. I'll get what I want when I become the WWF Champion."

"And you will, you're talented enough for it."

"I like to think so."

They turned a corner and were laughing at each other without seeing who was in front of them. They probably should've been watching where they were going, but they weren't, and they were going to pay for it in a moment. They stopped short when they felt the eyes on them and looked over to see who was blocking their path.

The entire McMahon family.


	12. Chapter 12

Stephanie stared at her parents a moment. It was like a scene out of an old western. Here they were, facing each other, guns about to be drawn, the clock about to strike high noon. The face-off had begun. All they needed was to turn their backs to each other and count to three before turning and drawing their weapons. She felt Chris sidle up to her and she felt his shoulder touching hers. She looked at him briefly before he gaze settled back on her family.

"Stephanie, we've been looking for you," Linda said, "I think that we need to have a talk."

"What about?" Stephanie asked innocently. She could see the barely contained rage in the eyes of her father and brother and knew that they were letting Linda speak lest their anger burst through their chests and strangle them.

"Stephanie, we really need to have a serious discussion," Linda said as calmly as she could muster at the moment. Stephanie glanced to Chris and they had a short conversation with their eyes.

"Okay, we'll talk," she said, grabbing Chris's hand in her own.

"Alone," Linda insisted, looking pointedly at Chris.

"Fine," Stephanie said, letting go of Chris's hand. He didn't let go however and she turned to him, facing him completely as she turned her back on her family, just like she had done the week before. "I can handle this."

Chris leaned in closer to her, "Are you sure?"

"Aren't you the one telling me that I have that fire in me? I thought that's what you saw in me," she teased gently.

"Yeah, but three on one, I'm not liking those odds," he teased back.

"Didn't you see what I did to Test?" she argued.

"Yeah, I saw, but still…well, I'm not going to tell you what to do," Chris insisted. "If you think that you can handle your family, I think that you can handle your family, but if you do need anyone, you know I've got your back."

"I know," she said, leaning up to kiss his cheek. He was surprised she went for such an obvious gesture of affection in front of her family. He could not get enough of her boldness. Just when he thought she was going to regress back into that annoying little princess act, she did something to surprise him. He figured that Stephanie was going to be full of surprises.

"Okay, good luck."

"I don't NEED luck," she winked as she turned back to her family. "Okay, we can talk."

Chris left them then, but it didn't stop him from glancing back, watching Stephanie lead her parents into what he assumed to be Vince's office. He didn't worry for her, why should he worry for her? It wasn't like he honestly cared about Stephanie. She was a thrill and an enigma, but she wasn't exactly someone that he could say he cared about. Maybe he'd care over time, but right now, he didn't really care. He just wanted to know how that confrontation was going to go.

As soon as the door was closed behind Stephanie, Vince turned to her. "Okay, so we've set the annulment into motion. We can have this marriage stricken from the record in three weeks."

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked. "Who's getting an annulment?"

"You are Stephanie," Shane answered. "Don't worry, Dad's got his best lawyers on this. We won't let Chris Jericho get away with what he's done."

"Wait, I'm sorry, you two are getting me an annulment?" Stephanie scoffed.

"Stephanie, we know what you've been through must be terrible," Linda said and Stephanie couldn't believe her mother was in on this too. Maybe her mother had been controlling her as well and she had just been taken in by her calm demeanor. Was everyone in this world except Chris trying to control her?

"Yes, and honey, you don't have to pretend that you want to be with Chris just because you married him," Vince told her calmly and in a very fatherly tone. "We know that you wanted to marry Andrew, and it can still happen. As soon as this annulment goes through, we'll give you the biggest and best wedding you've ever seen."

"Wait, so you're saying that you've taken control of the situation, of my life, and this is how it's going to be, you're going to just…have my marriage annulled?" Stephanie asked, folding her arms as she regarded her family. "This is what you think is best for me?"

"Of course," Vince said. "This man, this Jericho got you drunk. I don't know what I was thinking when I hired him."

"I don't know either Dad, I told you he was a bad investment," Shane chimed in and Stephanie wanted to call him a little rat bastard but she bit her tongue.

"I should've listened to you Shane. But Stephanie, it'll be okay," Vince told her, walking up to her and placing his hands on her shoulders. "Daddy will take care of everything. It'll be just like this marriage never existed and you don't have to pretend to be nice to Chris."

"Oh, so I don't have to pretend then?"

"Oh Stephanie, my poor little girl," Linda said, going up and hugging Stephanie. Stephanie had never wanted to throw her mother off of her more than she did in that moment. "I know how devastated you must be that your wedding was ruined."

"Why do you guys get to dictate what happens to me?" Stephanie asked. "Who asked you to get my marriage annulled? Who told you do that?"

"Stephanie, we couldn't let this marriage stand. Jericho got you drunk and married you while you were under the influence. He could've taken advantage of you. He could've raped you for all you know and we, as McMahons, are not going to stand for that," Vince explained.

"He didn't rape me Dad, he didn't even touch me, I would know okay," Stephanie said. "But I just can't believe you would put an annulment into motion without asking me."

"We couldn't get a hold of you, where were you anyways?" Shane asked.

"I was…away," Stephanie said. "Clearing my head, I guess. I was realizing what my life was like and how I had to change it."

"Good, good, I'm glad that you were doing that sweetie," Linda told her. "I'm glad that you didn't have to hang around that horrible Chris Jericho."

She wondered what her mother would think if she knew that not only had she spent the past entire week with Chris, she had moved into his house with him. Of course, she would leave out the important detail that she and Chris had separate rooms. It was better to let them think that they had shared a room, a bed, and everything else, even if she and Chris hadn't, even if she hadn't…

"I fail to see what's so wrong with him," Stephanie said.

"Um, he got you drunk and married you…probably to get his hands on our money," Shane responded. "I mean, come on, he wants to get his hands on the McMahon money and what better way than to get you drunk. No offense Stephanie, but you were the easiest target."

"So I'm just a target for him?"

"Exactly!" Shane emphasized. "He saw you, thought that he could get his way through you and then he went and followed you to Vegas so that she could have everything that he wanted. He targeted you, why else would he follow you?"

"And now I'm getting an annulment?"

"Yes, you're getting an annulment."

"Unbelievable," Stephanie said, looking at them. "When were you going to let me decide what was going to happen in my life? Why are you just assuming things for me? None of you are me. How could you just do that to me?"

"We didn't do anything that isn't for your own good Princess."

"My own good? Not consulting me and making life decisions for me is for my own good? You think that you controlling me is for my own good?"

"We're not controlling you sweetie, we're looking out for you," Linda told her gently. "You're young yet, you don't know how people out there are willing to use you and then dump you off like you're nothing. That's why Andrew is so good for you. He's a good man, a very good man and you'll be happy together once this annulment goes through."

"So you're going to throw me another wedding, a better wedding?"

"Yes Princess, whatever you want, you're going to have. You just say the word and it'll happen. We'll start planning it immediately," Vince told her, kissing her forehead.

"Daddy, watch the show okay? Because I want to go out there and tell everyone just what I think about what Chris Jericho did. I think you'll be very surprised and very…well, just watch, okay Daddy?" Stephanie asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes.

"Do you want us to come with you?" Vince asked. "We'll protect you."

"You know what?" Stephanie said excitedly, clapping her hands together. "You and Shane stay back here, as soon as you see me entering the ring, then you go backstage, that way, if Chris doesn't see you guys there, he'll be there and you can punish him for what he's done. Okay Daddy?"

"Of course Princess, whatever you want." Stephanie hugged her father tightly and then her brother and mother. "Okay, wish me luck."

Stephanie walked out of the room, or rather bounced out. When the door closed behind her, she scoffed. How had she ignored that for so many years when it was glaring her in the face right now? These people were trying to control every single move she made and it was starting to really get under her skin now. Thank God Chris showed up when he did or she'd be married to Andrew and still being controlled by her family. She stalked down the hallway to Chris's locker room, throwing the door open, almost putting a hole in the wall where it hit.

"Oh, they're going to pay," Stephanie said angrily as the door closed behind her with a much softer sound than it had opened.

"Who's going to pay?" Chris smirked.

"You were so right, all this time, they were just trying to make me a pawn for them. Oh, poor little Stephy, she can't do anything by herself. It's a wonder they let me alone, they probably think I'm going to have trouble not walking into a wall or something."

"What did I tell you?"

"I don't know how I didn't see it," Stephanie said, walking over and kneeling on the couch next to Chris, sitting her butt down against her legs. "You know what they did?"

"What?"

"Called their lawyers to get this," here she gestured between the two of them, "annulled."

"Wait, they started the ball rolling to get us annulled without asking you first?"

"Yes!" she said, incensed now that she had time to really think about it. "They think that they can just steamroll over everything. Well they're not. I told them to watch later, and they're going to watch later while I get in that ring and tell them that not only am I STAYING married to you, but that I wanted to marry you in the first place."

"So how much steam do you think is going to come out of your dad's ears?" he joked.

"Chris, thank you again, for everything," she told him, grabbing his hand and holding it in hers. "I never realized…I mean, I did realize that they were overprotective and could be controlling, but I never knew that I could be different. You showed me that, you're showing me that and thank you."

"Steph, come on, I didn't do anything you would've have done eventually," he said, trying to shrug off her thanks, but not letting go of her hand.

"Yeah, when Chris? After being married to Andrew for two years, with a baby on my hip? I don't think I would've had the guts to do it then."

"Sure you would," he winked.

"You save me," she told him simply and full of meaning. "Don't take that the wrong way, like I owe you my life or something, but you did save me from a life that I don't want to live. My parents are going to see just how much they can control me, and they're going to find out it's not much."

"Then we'll go out there and say just that."

"Good…are you going to be okay though? I know my dad and my brother are probably going to storm the ring and try to take you. They might bring reinforcements and I'd hate to think of you getting beat up by them."

"Don't worry about me Steph."

"But you don't have any back-up," she said. "They have an entire company."

"I said don't worry about it Steph," Chris told her. "You just worry about how you're going to tell your parents that you are no longer their little princess."

"We have to make this seem real," Stephanie reminded him. "We have to act like a real married couple."

"So you want to have sex right now then?" Chris joked. "Oh wait, I'm not allowed your body right? That was one of the stipulations."

Stephanie blushed a little bit. "But we have to make it seem like we've had…well, like we've slept together. So we have to be all over each other, got it?"

"You don't have to tell me twice," Chris said lecherously, placing his hand on her hip. She swatted him away impatiently. "I'm just getting some practice in."

She rolled her eyes. "We don't need practice. We just have to act married, the whole nine yards. I'm not going to do this half-way. You didn't see the way they were looking at me. Like I was five years old again and they had to tell me everything. Like I couldn't tie my own shoes. That's how they looked at me, like they had to take control of my marriage and make the decisions for me because I'm inept."

"Which you're not."

"Which I'm not," she said, standing up and tugging at his hand that she was still holding. "Let's go, I want to do this right now. I want them to know right now that I'm not going to be the one being controlled. From now on, I control them. I just got my share of the company so they can't do anything. If they try to even fire you, they're not going to get the chance."

"Job security, I knew there had to be more good reasons to marry you."

"For now."

"Hey, I'm riding this thing out until the waves gets to the shore," he joked.

"I wonder what they're going to do, I wonder what they're going to think," she said. "I bet you that they're going to flip out. Oh yes, oh, maybe my mom will cry. Do you think she'll cry?"

"Depends on what you say."

"Well then let's show them that Stephanie McMahon-Jericho is a force to be reckoned with."


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Thanks for the reviews everyone, I'm really glad you're liking the story, and I hope you continue to review. Thanks again. :)

* * *

Stephanie and Chris knew they were going to have to go out there and explain themselves, but they weren't particularly looking forward to it. They knew that they were going to become major targets for Vince and Shane. Chris had changed his shoes and so had Stephanie in case they had to make a quick getaway, which they realized was probably an inevitability considering the other parties.

"And we're totally sure about this?" Stephanie asked coyly, knowing full well that they had to go out there and explain themselves.

"Of course we're totally sure about this," Chris told her. "I think we've been sure about this since the moment that I came to your room in Vegas. Don't even tell me you're going to back out now."

"No," she said firmly, guiding him to a more secluded spot in the gorilla. She held both of his hands in hers and looked him straight in the eye, never wavering, "Chris, I want to do this, I want to go out there and I want them to realize they're not controlling me on this one. After that annulment bullshit, I'm not going to stand for that any longer. I'm an adult now and if this is the only way they're going to see it, then so be it."

"Okay, then you are sure," Chris said with a laugh. "Probably more sure than I am at the moment, and that's a helluva lot."

"Good, then we're both on the same page, and I'm glad that we're on the same page, it'll make this easier," Chris told her. "And you don't really want this to go badly, especially since you know…we're doing a lot of things that people aren't going to be happy with."

"As long as my father isn't happy, and as long as Shane isn't happy, then I'm going to be just fine and dandy."

"And we have to remember that we have to act like a married couple, a real married couple, while we're here, so you have to be prepared to do that, are you prepared to do that?" Chris asked her.

Stephanie giggled. "Geez, you have more worries than I've had in a while. Don't worry Chris, I know exactly how this is going to go. It's going to go perfectly and the two of us are going to walk out of here the winners."

"Or running for our lives," Chris joked.

"That too," she said, looking down at their running shoes. "But at least we're prepared in the event that happens."

"Ms. McMahon, you're up next," a production assistant told the brunette.

"Excuse me," she sneered. "One, I was having a conversation and you shouldn't interrupt someone who's having a conversation and two, my name is not McMahon, my name is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, and don't you forget it next time, do you hear me?"

"I'm sorry ma'am," the guy said, shrinking away from the intimidating woman. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"Well next time, remember," she snapped. She rolled her eyes to Chris and he held in his laughter until the guy was gone. Stephanie gave him a cute smile. "What?"

"I always knew you were a bitch, but damn girl, when you want to be a bitch, you can seriously be a bitch. I like it, I'd like to see that girl more often, she definitely takes charge of her life, and I like that in a woman."

"Are you saying that you're attracted to me?" she asked him, giving him a little bit of a seductive look. Chris just stared back, raising an eyebrow, causing her to start giggling again.

"I'm telling you, you give me the signal and I'll take the opportunity in two seconds," he told her, leaning in to speak to her as Stephanie heard her music going off. "And that's our cue Princess."

"Don't call me that," Stephanie told him. "Or you'll have to face my wrath too."

"But I like calling you that," he told her as he started to follow her to the stairs. She climbed them up first and Chris would be lying if he said that he didn't check out her ass. She was wearing a short skirt and a halter top and she was looking really gorgeous, way different than how she looked when she was with Test. But he liked the difference and he liked the fact that she was wearing clothes that she liked rather than clothes that had been decided for her before she even bought them.

Stephanie showed up at the top of the ramp. She was still using her father's entrance music, but that was better since it wouldn't arise his suspicions. Or maybe they were already suspicious just over the fact that Chris was not two steps behind Stephanie as they walked down the ramp. He let her lead, knowing this was mainly her war to fight and he was just her…well, he was…he was something of a protector to her, but definitely a partner to her.

Backstage, Vince and Shane were looking at each other in disbelief. They had stayed back there like Stephanie had asked, but they weren't expecting Chris to be out there and they were confused. But neither one even thought that Stephanie and Chris working together was a possibility.

"Do you think she's going to dump him right now?" Shane asked his father.

"Definitely, she's a McMahon, we do things face-to-face, we don't shrink away from adversity, we face it head on. She's just dumping that asshole," Vince said, maybe to convince himself, maybe not.

"And she must've thought it would be much easier to get at Chris if he were in the ring when we went down there."

"She IS a McMahon," Vince said proudly.

Stephanie took the microphone as Chris did his entrance. She stood in the middle of the ring as the lights turned up and she looked around the arena. They were cheering and she smiled at them. They had booed her last week when she was going to marry Test, but that was because of her family, they hated her father and brother just as much as she did right now. She smiled at Chris briefly before turning back to the crowd.

"As many of you know," she started, "last week I was supposed to marry Andrew Martin and start my new life as Stephanie Martin. Then something happened that kind of derailed that."

Chris, who had gone and gotten his own microphone interrupted his wife, "I think I'm the one who derailed that." The crowd cheered at that. "I'd just like to apologize for that Stephanie, it was never my intention to ruin your wedding."

"Oh, I know Chris. I know that you didn't mean to do that, maybe if we had planned it out a little better then the entire wedding wouldn't have happened."

"I know," Stephanie said. "But I very well couldn't let all the money my parents put into the wedding go to waste, but then I don't think they would've appreciated me just switching grooms right before the wedding."

"Don't worry, I'm not offended that I wasn't invited," Chris told her as he looked to the crowd. "Oh, look, we're leaving everyone out of our little secret."

"I know, even my family isn't in on the secret," Stephanie said, pouting. "And I know how my parents and brother love to know exactly what's going on in my life. In fact, they love it so much that they've been trying to live my life for me as of late."

"And how did that make you FEEL?" Chris asked, playing the role of interviewer now as they knew they were toying with Stephanie's family.

"It made me feel horrible Chris," Stephanie said, her voice pathetic. "Everyone, do you think that my brother and father are good people." She was met with vitriolic boos. She nodded her head slowly. "Yeah, I agree, they aren't good people, and I'm here to tell them that I'm not going to take it anymore."

The TitanTron lit up and Stephanie turned to the screen. Vince was on-screen with Shane behind him. "Stephanie, what's going on?"

"Well hello Daddy," Stephanie said. "I'm just telling everyone how you wanted to control my life and how I'm taking my life back."

"Jericho got you drunk and married you against your will!" Vince protested.

"Actually Daddy, I'd like to play a little special footage that didn't make it to air during the wedding. I think it should clear everything up. If the truck will please play the tape I dropped off earlier."

Vince faded from the screen and another video started up. This time, it was in a random hotel room and Chris and Stephanie were sitting in front of a table. The camera looked to be positioned on a tripod or something. Stephanie was sitting there smiling and Chris was looking intently.

"_If we make them think I'm drunk, they'll buy it."_

"_Then we'll make them think you're drunk and you'll get away from them all."_

"_Yes, I'll get away from them all and they'll never suspect a thing…until I want them to know that is," Stephanie said with an evil smile. "Daddy will never know what hit him."_

"So you see Daddy, Chris didn't get me drunk and Chris didn't force me to marry him, in fact, Chris couldn't force me to do anything because anything he wants me to do, I'll do willingly," Stephanie said, walking over to Chris and running her hand down his chest through his unbuttoned shirt.

"No, I didn't have to persuade her to do anything," Chris said, licking his lips as he gazed down at Stephanie. "Not a thing."

"Nope," Stephanie said, noticing the screen was back on her dad, but refusing to actually look over as she pretended to be completely enthralled with Chris. "In fact, I've gotta admit, since the first time I met Chris, I knew that we had something special, something…"

"Hot," Chris supplied as he stepped a little bit closer to Stephanie.

"Yes, hot," Stephanie said, her voice low as she gazed up at Chris, running her finger down his jaw. "There's just been something between us…"

"Did you hear that Vinnie?" Chris asked, "Your daughter totally wants me, that must hurt right, especially because you wanted her with that assclown Test. But don't worry Vinnie, she's got a real man now."

"Yeah, a real man," Stephanie said as she tugged on Chris's shirt, pulling him down to her level. She pressed her lips to his and he responded immediately. It was actually kind of fun to kiss her whenever he wanted to. He wrapped his arms around her as she responded by making the kiss deeper. Vince, Shane and Linda were looking on in horror as Stephanie was unabashedly making out with her…husband in the middle of the ring.

"Mmm, you taste good," Chris said as he pulled away. "So Vince, Steph tells me you were trying to get us annulled."

"Don't worry baby," Stephanie said, her voice low and like a purr. "I wouldn't let that happen."

"Stephanie, this is UNACCEPTABLE!" Vince screamed, gaining his voice back and in a big way. "You will NOT stay married to him!"

"Last I checked, I was over eighteen, therefore, I'm an adult and I can marry whoever the hell I want to!" Stephanie yelled back. "You can't control me!"

"Stephanie, you can't be serious, Chris Jericho? He's not right for you!" Shane added.

"Oh shove it up your ass Shane," Stephanie said, as Shane's jaw dropped. "You don't control me either, in fact, from now on, the only one controlling my life is me."

"Stephanie Marie McMahon, you will not disobey me," Vince warned.

"Actually Daddy, my name is Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, see, I'm still a McMahon, but now I'm a Jericho too, and you're just going to have to accept that."

"You can't honestly tell me that you love that man," Shane told her.

"Oh, I can and I will," Stephanie said, turning to gaze at Chris again. "I love you Chris."

"I love you too," he told her and though he didn't mean it, he did a pretty good job of pretending like he did. He captured her lips again, a short kiss this time, but enough to make her family turn green. When they looked back up, Linda was the only person in the room and she was crying. "They're coming."

"I know," she whispered. They stood there in the middle of the ring, waiting for it to happen. Vince came charging down the ramp and Chris pushed Stephanie out of the way gently.

"Wait for me outside the ring, get ready to leave really quickly."

Stephanie nodded and got out of the ring quickly, just in time to see her father about to reach the ring. She went towards the timekeeper, knowing that Chris could handle her father. She watched as Chris stalked around the ring, waiting for Vince to come in. Vince stood there for a moment, yelling belligerently at Chris for taking his little girl. Stephanie watched this unfold until she saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Her brother had just launched himself over the barrier and into the area. He didn't give her a second glance as he went to the ring to climb in.

Stephanie grabbed an empty folding chair and rushed to the ring, throwing the chair inside and climbing in, not caring about what she was revealing with her short skirt. She went up behind her brother and swung the chair, hard. Her brother slumped down and Chris whirled around to look at Stephanie. She shrugged as he looked at her with a wide grin. Then she saw her father charging the ring.

"Chris!" she yelled. He turned around to intercept Vince. Stephanie watched as Chris gave her father a clothesline and knocked him down. Stephanie looked at her broken family. She walked over to Chris. "You okay?"

"Am I okay, damn girl, you're amazing."

They kissed again in the middle of the ring, cementing their relationship.


	14. Chapter 14

"I can't believe you laid out your brother!"

Stephanie giggled as she batted her eyelashes comically and did her best impression of an innocent little girl. "He was coming after my husband, what was I supposed to do?"

"Um, I don't know, let me handle it like I was going to?" Chris asked, but was totally appreciative of what she had done for him.

"Yeah, you had it SO handled," she joked. "You didn't have a single thing handled. If it weren't for me, it would be you on your back in the middle of the ring. And then the whole entire operation would fall apart."

"The entire operation?"

"Yes, the entire thing," she said as she placed her hand on his arm. He looked down at it briefly, but didn't say anything to her. "And then I'd divorce you."

"Well, lucky for me you wield a mean chair. So what do you anticipate your family doing?"

"Murdering you," she said, trying to sound serious, but then laughed. "What the hell are they going to do? Seriously, they've got nothing. They can't force me to divorce you, it was my decision."

"That's true, so they won't try to set up an ambush?"

"Oh, they'll be an ambush I'm sure, but they wouldn't hit me, no matter how mad they are at me right now. We just have to stick together, if you're never alone, they can never get to you. I think they'd get Andrew on their side too, or maybe he'd work by himself, but we have to worry about him too."

"I figured as much, the guy loved you."

"Whatever," she said, waving it off. Chris wondered if she still felt something for Test deep down. She said she was fine with everything that had happened with Test, but he wasn't so sure.

They had high-tailed it out of the arena as soon as they had had their confrontation with the McMahon family. Sticking around meant that things could escalate and Chris and Stephanie could get caught into a trap and that was the last thing either of them wanted. So they were making their way to their hotel via the limo that had driven them there in the first place. They were there before they knew it and went up to their joint hotel room.

They were just hanging around when Stephanie heard a rapping at the hotel room door. She looked to Chris, who was laying on the bed next to her, to see if he had heard it. He shrugged and she got up from the bed, wondering who would be here so late. She could only think of a couple possibilities and she dreaded seeing her father on the other side. She didn't want to deal with him right now.

She peeked through the peephole and saw her mother. She fairly raced back to the room and told Chris. "It's my mom, what do I do?"

"Do you want to answer it?" he asked logically.

"But us?"

"We're married," he reminded her.

"Oh yeah," she giggled. "Come to the door with me."

"Is than an order or a question?"

She smiled coyly, "An order." Chris got up from his bed and threw off his shirt and then peeled off his pajama pants. Stephanie's eyes widened in surprise. "What are you doing!"

"I'm giving your mother the impression that she's interrupting something. That means she's more likely to leave."

"Oh…good idea," she said, getting a little distracted by his lack of clothing. "Well, I guess I should get in the act."

Chris didn't know what she meant, but would soon find out. She went over and picked up his discarded shirt. He opened his mouth to speak when she took off her shirt, leaving him speechless. She was wearing a bra (she wasn't that extroverted!), but she was still stunning. He almost started gaping, but he kept his cool. He wasn't going to let her know how she had affected him.

After she pulled his shirt on her body (it was so big on her it went mid-thigh and her arms were practically swimming in the sleeves), she drew her arms back into the shirt and when they reappeared her bra was now in her hand. Chris had to turn away at this point. It was one thing to see her in her bra, but now she was sans bra and in his shirt.

Since he had turned away he missed the piece de resistance. Stephanie pulled her own pajama pants off, leaving her in Chris's t-shirt and a pair of cotton panties. When Chris looked back at her, he knew he was a goner. He gulped hard. He couldn't deny it anymore, and it hadn't even been that long. He was attracted to Stephanie.

"Okay, now I think I'm ready," she told him.

He swallowed down his arising feelings, "I would say you are."

She grabbed his hand, and it was so soft and delicate. What had he gotten himself into? This was just a business arrangement; he couldn't start falling for Stephanie. That wouldn't do at all. He let her pull him to the door and she placed his arm around her waist before opening the door to her mother. Her waist was slim and not as firm as some of the other divas, but soft and womanly. That was the only thing going through his mind at the moment.

"Mom! This IS a surprise!" Stephanie said jovially.

Linda eyed her daughter and her…husband wearily. "I was hoping we could talk."

"Well, Chris and I were…busy," Stephanie said, tilting her head to look at Chris seductively. She ran her hand through his long hair. Chris took a deep breath, but couldn't resist and placed a soft kiss to her neck. "You should know how newlyweds are Mom."

"Stephanie please help me understand this," Linda pleaded.

"What's there to understand?" Stephanie asked.

"How about the fact that you were supposed to marry Andrew?"

"Oh yeah, he was nice or whatever, but he couldn't satisfy my needs…" Steph explained. "I was tired of my life, and Chris offered me a way out. And well…how could I help but not be attracted to him? I couldn't resist him…and then I fell for him."

"It was SO mutual," Chris whispered huskily.

Stephanie giggled. "See, Andrew just wasn't 'the one.'"

"Stephanie, baby, you barely know the man!"

"How dare you come here just to insult my husband," Stephanie said. She didn't want to deal with her family anymore. It was becoming increasingly obvious that her family was never going to support her decisions. She was just so sick and tired of being the baby. She was hardly the baby they thought she was.

"I'm not insulting him," Linda said in a gentle, motherly tone. She turned to Chris, "I'm not trying to insult you, but the fact of the matter is that we don't know you, or your intentions towards my daughter."

"Don't you trust in my decisions?" Stephanie asked.

"Sweetie, you're young yet…"

Chris could see Stephanie's increasing distress and cleared his throat. "I think you should leave, Linda."

"But--"

"Really, I think that would be best," Chris interrupted. "You're just upsetting my wife now, and I will not tolerate that happening to her, especially from her mother."

Linda closed her eyes. "I don't want to leave it like this."

"Give us all time to cool off," he said rationally.

Linda still didn't want to go, but she found herself agreeing with Chris. They all needed time to cool off before words were said that couldn't be taken back. She nodded and turned to leave and Chris closed the door, leaning back against it as he took in Stephanie. She ran a hand through her long, brown hair. She looked up at him in earnest and gave him a shaky smile. He just stared at her for a second.

"What? Do I have gunk on my face or something?" she asked testily.

"No," he shrugged.

"Then what are you looking at?"

"You," he said simply. "Is that a crime? Should I not look at my wife?"

"Wife by business," she answered, turning to go back into the bedroom. "But isn't that what marriage is in the first place, an elaborate deal for business? I mean, you have to think about money so much it should just be regarded as a merging between two separate companies."

"And love?"

"Love doesn't really exist, does it?"

"You're way too jaded for someone so young."

She sat down on her bed and looked up at him. "That's what you get when you grow up in my family. That's how they raised me."

"I think that's pretty crummy," Chris said, sitting down next to her. "You don't deserve to look at life like that."

"Why do you care Chris?"

"I helped you, didn't I? I put myself in this situation, and I'd like to consider you a friend Steph," he told her. "Hell, you're already stealing my clothing." He grabbed a little at her shirt to illustrate his point.

She laughed and looked down. "I think I'll sleep in this, it's really comfortable."

"Go for it," he said. "You know, if you want to talk, I'm here."

"I might not have you as figured out as I thought I did Chris," she told him honestly. "When I first met you, you seemed like such a complete jackass. You were a horrible person, just totally horrible."

"And now? I'm hoping that you're going to say something nice," he joked.

"I am, if you'd let me finish," she told him sternly. "You're not what I expected, I expected you to be…well, an ass who was seriously only doing this for personal gain, but after what you just did right there, I mean, I know you were acting…"

"I wasn't acting when I told your mother to leave you alone," Chris said. "Look, I don't know much about your past, but judging from the way you were looking when your mother was speaking to you, I can gather a lot from that. I'm an expert at reading people."

"Still cocky I see," she said, raising an eyebrow. "Some things don't change I guess."

"Nope, you can't expect marriage to change a guy overnight," Chris told her with a wink. "So do you want to go to bed or do you want to talk? I'm up for either, hell, I'd be up for club-hopping right now."

"Club-hopping?"

"You DO know what that is right?"

"Yeah, just never been," she told him.

"You've never been? You went to college right?"

"Yeah I went to college, but there were far too many risks if I did anything crazy. I mean, if someone took some bad picture of me, doing something stupid, it would be everywhere with who my father is. I mean, people would know and I couldn't take that, so I laid low in college, didn't really do a whole lot."

"What kind of life have you had?" Chris asked curiously. From what he knew of Stephanie, and what he was learning slowly, she knew that she had lived a very sheltered life, but he didn't know the depths to that sheltering.

"It's been fine, for the most part," Stephanie told him. "I didn't know any better, so how can I compare it. My life has always been full of things that I wanted and needed, and what more can I say?"

"But did you get to do everything you wanted, really?"

"No, of course not, but that's the sacrifice that you make," Stephanie explained to him. "Daddy always talked about the sacrifices that we had to make. That's just what happens, you sacrifice."

"But at some point, you can't sacrifice everything," Chris pointed out. "But you have your freedom here, okay. I swear to you, if you have anything with me, it's your freedom."

"I know," she told him. "Thanks for that back there with my mom…she's just disappointed. She wanted me to marry Test."

"You're calling him Test now."

"So I am," she said. "I guess he's just another wrestler, right, you're my husband now." She plucked at her shirt, "Your shirt after all."

"Looks better on you, seriously," he told her. "You ready to hit the sack?"

"It's been a long night," she said and he nodded in agreement. "Remind me never to secretly get married and then confront my entire family all in the span of a week okay? I don't think that my body or my mind can take that kind of punishment."

"And to think, I didn't even sleep with you, then you'd REALLY be worn out," Chris kidded. Stephanie blushed and hurriedly climbed into bed, giving Chris a nice view of her underwear. He swallowed down the lust threatening to rush up his body and climbed into his own bed.

"Oh, this feels good," Stephanie said, settling into the blankets.

Chris buried his face into his pillow, trying to drown out Stephanie's voice. She was making little moaning sounds now as she tried to get comfortable. He pushed the pillow against his ears. This was not a good situation. If he didn't control himself, he'd be very embarrassed and he wasn't going to let Stephanie get the upper-hand in this relationship.

After all, it was still a contest.


	15. Chapter 15

"Now, you're sure you want to go out there looking like that?"

"Why wouldn't I?" she asked as she smoothed her hand down over her skirt, trying to get the invisible wrinkles out of it. Chris pursed his lips for a moment and she looked up into his azure blue eyes. "Why wouldn't I Chris?"

"I don't know, it's just not you…at least not the you I'm used to."

"Which is _exactly _why I'm wearing it," Stephanie said. "I mean, you saw me before, you saw the kind of outfits that I wore, the sweater sets, the cardigans, the penny loafers. Chris, it looked like my mom laid out my clothes for me every morning!"

Chris chuckled, "I can't dispute that, but I mean, getting your own style doesn't mean you have to go to the direct opposite of what you're used to. I did think you were a little…too daring for the sweater sets."

"Daring?"

"With that attitude of yours, and especially the guts, I don't see you as the conservative Connecticut debutante that your mother probably wanted you to be. But I mean, this ensemble is…well, I guess I have to get used to it."

"That's right, because you have no say over me," she said proudly. "I kind of like it, it makes me feel…empowered."

"That's not a word I had thought of, but go with it if you must," Chris told her. He took in her outfit one more time. She was wearing a black leather mini-skirt and a light blue halter-top that was pretty low-cut in the front and very low-cut in the back. She had paired that with a pair of strappy almost stiletto heels. He swallowed audibly as he observed her new image. He had taken her shopping for some new outfits, but he had never imagined she would look so incredibly hot in them.

He was slowly coming to grips with the fact that Stephanie was very attractive. When she had dressed like a middle-aged woman, she had a certain charm and flair that you knew was waiting to bust at the seams. Apparently the seams had busted and he was left with the woman that stood in front of her. He thought she looked pretty amazing and he never knew that she had that kind of voluptuousness inside of her.

"Well do you at least think it looks good on me?"

"Yeah," he said immediately, then caught himself, coolly sitting back in his chair. "But you can do whatever you want to do and I can't really say anything about that. I think you look good though. But it only matters what you think."

"I love it," Stephanie said with a grin. "My mother and father will flip their lids when they see me in this. I really think that my dad might just fall over seeing his little girl not so little anymore. Serves him right."

"Well, he's definitely not going to see you as his little girl," Chris said. "So I'm guessing they're the ones who put me in that match tonight."

"You're probably right," Stephanie said as she gazed down at her husband. "They probably conspired with Test to get you in a match. This is his way of avenging the fact that you took me away and married me. But you'll beat him, I'm confident in you."

Chris appreciated the easy way in which she said that. He didn't have a lot of supporters past his parents. Sure, he had friends and they were great, but they weren't really there to support him. It was nice to have Stephanie by his side. It was nice to walk out there and know that at least one person was out there supporting you. He had never really had that before. Sure, he had had Ralphus in WCW, but really, that was as a joke and nothing more. Besides, he'd take Stephanie over Ralphus any day.

"Thanks," he replied genuinely. She took note of the tone in his voice and glanced over at him, but he was bent over his boots, tying them. She admired him for a second. She liked that he gave her space, but that he was there for her too.

"You're welcome, but it's true, you've got a lot going for you," Stephanie told him nonchalantly. "I don't think I'd ever want to be across from you in a ring."

"I don't think you have to worry about that, I'm not in the business of hitting women," Chris told her, standing up and jumping in place. She shrugged and he gave her a look, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing, you'd probably just annoy them to death like you did to me," Stephanie giggled.

"Hey, I got you to marry me, I'd consider that a pretty big feat if I want to brag."

"Or maybe you just wore me down and I figured if I agreed it would get you off my back," she teased back. She liked teasing with him, with Test, there hadn't been a lot of teasing. Not that she was in a relationship with Chris or anything, not a real one anyways, they had only kissed in front of the audience to keep up the charade that they had genuinely fallen for each other.

"Jericho, you're on in ten!" someone said as they knocked on his door.

"So Mrs. Jericho, are you ready to make your debut as the new and improved Stephanie McMahon-Jericho?" Chris asked, extending a hand to her.

She took it and he ignored the heat in the palm of his hand. To say that it was electric would be far too poetic for his own personal tastes, but the heat of her hand was definitely something that he could feel. It fit, her hand fit in his and as he let his grip tighten, he felt her staring at their connected palms and tugged him playfully towards the door. She was going to be his undoing, he predicted. How could he expect to go out there and have a good match when she was looking like that? He would soon find out though because his match was coming up.

The match was a design of the McMahons and Test. They wanted to give Test a little measure of revenge for the botched wedding. They thought, though, that if Stephanie were to see Test, were to actually be around him for a prolonged period of time, she would see the error of her ways and come back to the family fold. Then she could marry Test like she was supposed to and have the life that she was supposed to. Boy, were they in for a surprise.

Stephanie walked with confidence down the corridor. She was hanging off Chris's arm and he was moving his neck back and forth to loosen it up. She held her head high as she got stares from all the other wrestlers and backstage personnel. She was pleased when she saw some of the guy's jaws dropping around her. That was the exact kind of response that she wanted. She tossed her long, brown hair over her shoulder and gazed at her husband, who was seemingly oblivious to the looks she was getting.

Chris, however, was not as oblivious as he seemed. He could see people doing a double-take and it stirred a peculiar feeling of jealousy in his stomach. He didn't like guys looking at Stephanie that way. Sure, she was dressed provocatively, but they didn't have to ogle her like she was a piece of meat and they were a hungry dog. He did appreciate the fact that he had a hot wife, but knowing how he looked, he was bound to get one, one of these days.

"You seem to be getting a lot of attention," Chris whispered to her and she smiled, realizing he had noticed.

"What can I say? I'm gorgeous."

"I knew I'd get you out of that shell," he winked as they stood at the gorilla. Chris let go of Stephanie's arm to do some stretches. She stood there, looking around, waiting for Chris's cue when she saw Test enter the area. She glanced at Chris, but he was still doing his ritual. Test caught sight of Stephanie and his jaw dropped. She had never, not once looked like that when they were dating. It was…she looked pretty damn good, and he wanted her now more than ever.

Chris's countdown ticked down and then he and Stephanie were out there, walking down the ramp. They got a mixture of cheers and boos, more cheers than boos though since nobody really like the McMahon family and to see Stephanie so openly defy them was a breath of fresh air. They reached the ring and Chris gave his hand to Stephanie to help her up the ring steps before climbing them himself. He hung on the ropes a little, and then lifted the ropes for Stephanie to gingerly step through.

"Do you want me to interfere?" Stephanie whispered as Chris's music ended and Test's music began.

"Wherever you see fit," Chris answered. "But try to stay out of harm's way, you hear?"

"I will," she told him, and pressed a light kiss to his lips before proceeding to get out of the ring to let the match start.

Chris was too engrossed in making sure that Stephanie got out of the ring safely, he didn't see when Test charged to the ring until the man was almost on top of him. Test speared Chris to the ring and started to pummel him. Chris was quick to react, however, as he turned the tables on the bigger man and started to punch him. The both of them staggered to their feet and locked for a second before Chris ran the ropes and hit a clothesline on Test, causing him to weave back and forth on his feet.

Stephanie furiously pounded on the mat, cheering her husband on. She knew that he was more talented than Test. All Chris needed to do was avoid the big boot and he would be home free to win this match. Stephanie had never cheered anyone so vigorously before, but she liked it. She liked that she had someone to cheer for and know that they could win any match they were put into.

Test had since gotten the upper-hand and had pushed Chris into a corner before administering some back-hand chops. Stephanie could see Chris's chest becoming red from the slaps and she frowned. He had a nice chest and she hated to see it taking such abuse. Chris slumped against the turnbuckle before ducking under Test's arm and grabbing it swinging him into the ropes a couple times before hitting him with an enziguri (I know that's probably spelled wrong) and knocking Test down. Chris went for the Lionsault while Test was down, but Test brought his knees up at the last moment right into Chris's ribs. He cried out in pain as he grabbed at his mid-section.

"Come on Chris, get up!" Stephanie yelled for her husband, slapping her hand on the mat. Test crawled over to where Chris was lying down, and tried to go for the pin, but Stephanie scrambled onto the ring apron and Stephanie leaned into the ring. "Hey! Ref!"

The referee came over and yelled at her, "Get out of here! Get out of the match!"

"Why? That's my husband!" she said, pointing and grabbing at the referee's shirt.

This gave Chris the opportunity to get up and not get pinned by Test. Chris swung Test into the ropes, but Test caught him and tried to give him a back-breaker. Chris got out of the move and went to swing Test into the ropes again, but Test countered the move. Test sent Chris flying towards Stephanie and Chris knew he was going to hit the referee which would help him immensely. Stephanie could interfere then. But the referee moved out of the way just in time and Chris's elbow was sent flying into Stephanie's face.

Stephanie didn't know what was coming, but she suddenly felt herself falling. Then everything kind of blacked out. She woke up what seemed like a long time later, but was only a few seconds. Chris was looking at her, horrified by what just happened. He felt Test grab him by the shoulder, but Chris turned and punched him in the mouth, getting him away from him so he could check on Stephanie. He was out of the ring in a moment, pushing the sweaty hair out of his face as he knelt by his wife.

"Steph, Steph, can you hear me?" Chris asked.

Stephanie tried to sit up, and groggily responded, "Chris?"

"Yeah, it's me," he said, then she rolled onto her side, her nose started to bleed profusely. "Shit. Steph, come on, we're going to have to get you to the trainers. I think you broke your nose."

Stephanie lifted her hand gently to her face, which felt strangely warm and wet. She pulled her hand away from her face and looked down at it and saw it was covered in blood. She started to panic and looked up at Chris with wide eyes. "Chris…Chris, what's happening?"

"I think you just broke your nose," he repeated. He lifted her up easily into his arms and forgoing the match, started for the ramp. He vaguely heard the referee counting him out, and then the bell ringing, but he didn't care. His wife was injured and he didn't care about a match right now. He took her to the trainers quickly, feeling her shaking. He kissed her temple and she looked at him with nervous eyes. "It'll be okay."

"Okay," she said, her voice cracking a little as Chris kicked open the door to the trainers, who had been anticipating them.

Chris sat down next to Stephanie as they had her lean forward to try and stop the bleeding. Chris got up, feeling like he needed to do something and grabbed a towel and went to the sink in the room and wet it. He went back over to Stephanie and knelt down next to her chair, starting to wipe her hands free from the blood she had gotten on them. She was still a little dazed and didn't immediately notice what he was doing as the doctor poked around her swelling nose. She yelped in pain as the doctor touched a particularly sensitive part.

"Yeah, she has a broken nose, it doesn't look too bad," the trainer said. "I can put a splint on it and she would have to wear it for a couple of weeks until this heals. I don't see any real damage to it."

"Good," Chris said. "Did you hear that Steph, you're going to be okay."

"Okay," she said. "Thank you."

"Let me just get that splint ready." The trainer walked to another part of the room, prepared for this kind of situation and Chris reached up to start wiping the blood away from Stephanie's beautiful face. He smiled as her face became more and more visible.

"Thanks," Stephanie said, looking at Chris, her eyes welled with tears from the pain of her nose.

"Hey, not a problem," Chris said. "I couldn't have you looking like you were in a Halloween movie or something." She gave him a shaky smile and he ran his hand down the side of her face. "I'm sorry I hit you, I didn't mean to."

"No, I know," she nodded. "Test threw you into me."

"Bastard, I'll get him for that," Chris said bitterly.

But in fact, Test was already planning something to get at Chris.


	16. Chapter 16

"I look terrible."

"You do not look terrible," Chris assured her as they sat in their rental car outside of the arena. He was trying to persuade her to go inside the arena with him. But she was self-conscious of the way she looked. She had had her nose broken the week before and her nose still had the splint on it, accompanied by the waning effects of two black eyes.

"Yes I do," she said, pulling down the visor in front of her and studying her face. "Chris, I cannot go out there looking like this, why did you drag me to the show? You're out to embarrass me aren't you? This is your evil plan."

"Yes Stephanie, I decided that you looking like this was my way of torturing you," Chris told her, rolling his eyes. "I wanted to bring you here so you would be humiliated."

"I am humiliated," she said, turning to face him. "Chris, can't I just drop you off and go back to the hotel and hang out there for the rest of the evening?"

"You really don't want to be here?" Chris asked.

"I really don't want to be here, you may think I'm vain or something, but I look horrible, and I don't want to be here looking like this," Stephanie said, gesturing to her face. "I'll come back and pick you up."

"You promise?" he asked with a ghost of a smile on his face, "because if this is some elaborate plan to leave me waiting outside the arena until tomorrow morning, I'm not going to take too kindly to that."

She laughed a little, "I promise to come pick you up after the show is over."

"Okay," he nodded, grabbing his things from the back of the car. "But you really do have to come back or I'm going to be so pissed off at you Stephanie McMahon."

"McMahon-Jericho right, or just Jericho," she told him as she got out of the car and rounded back to the driver's side so that she could drive back to the hotel after Chris got out.

She looked up and saw Test on the other side of the parking lot and he appeared to be looking over where she was. She narrowed her eyes a bit at him, knowing that he was the real reason that she had a broken nose right now. If he hadn't been totally careless, Chris wouldn't have been knocked into her. She was starting to get angry as she glared unabashedly at Test.

His head turned and caught her eye. The two made eye contact, and Test smirked at her, and then gave her a smile, but it was far from genuine. Stephanie stared after him as he turned to walk away, oblivious to the fact that Chris had gotten out of the car and was now staring at her. He turned to look at what she had been looking at and saw the retreating figure of Test. He looked back to Stephanie and couldn't decipher the look on her face. He hadn't yet learned to read some of her faces so he was at a loss at what to think.

He didn't much care for the feeling in the pit of his stomach though. He was getting those a lot more lately since Stephanie had entered his life and since he had married her. She gave him feelings that he wasn't accustomed to, and he knew that he already found her attractive, but didn't want to admit to himself that it could be even more than that. If he allowed that to happen, he would only be setting himself up for a fall.

The look that she had been sending Test could've been one of wistfulness for all he knew. She could be regretting the fact that she wanted to get revenge over her family, and that she hadn't married Test. Stephanie had told him that she was over not marrying Test and perhaps it had never been the right decision at all, but they had been engaged and presumably, she had had feelings of love towards him. He was just biding his time with Stephanie, he knew, because she was eventually going to leave him anyways.

"Hey," he said softly, gaining her attention.

"Be careful tonight okay?" Stephanie said, not liking the uneasy feeling that Test's look had given her.

"I'm always careful," he said with a smirk. "Don't tell me you're actually worrying about me now."

"I'm actually worrying about you now so don't go do something stupid, and…just watch your back," Stephanie said, tugging on a strand of his loose hair. Chris smiled and reached up to take her hand in his.

"Thanks for worrying about me, it's nice to have someone like that."

"It's what wives do I'm assuming," she told him, "besides, you were caring about me when I broke my nose, tit for tat I say."

"I'll be fine, what's the worst that can happen, your stupid ex-fiancé trying to beat me up or something, I can take him on. Oh, or your family, they don't scare me Steph, so don't worry about it. Take care of yourself okay, and for the record, I don't think that you look so bad."

She fought the urge to kiss him, instead leaning forward to kiss his cheek. She let her mouth linger near his ear though and whispered, "Still, just be careful."

She pulled away and smiled as she walked around him to get back into the car. He started walking towards the arena, waving at her while she drove off. She lifted her hand to her ear to signal to call him when he needed to be picked up. He couldn't keep the smile off of his face as he walked into the arena. Despite everything, Stephanie and him had a great week together, getting closer. Her broken nose had been a catalyst of sorts and he never thought a broken nose would make him so happy.

He walked inside the arena, immediately going to get a schedule to see what he was doing for the evening, if there were any set plans or matches for him. He was surprised to find there wasn't, but then he wasn't too surprised since Vince and Shane hated his guts right now. He didn't blame them, to them, he had stolen their little girl, the baby of the family.

"Hey Chris!"

Chris turned to see Edge coming towards him. Edge had been one of the guys that he had known before entering the WWF and they had a good rapport with each other. Chris nodded in recognition before Edge patted him on the shoulder.

"Where's the little wifey?" Edge asked, looking around.

"She's a little self-conscious about the broken nose," Chris laughed. "Women, they don't want to look anything but perfect."

"Oh man, I know how that its," Edge laughed. "Look, that's not what I wanted to say to you, but I just wanted to tell you that there's something fishy going on tonight. Now, you didn't hear this from me, but I saw Test going into the McMahon's dressing room, and I don't know man, I'd watch your back."

"You know, Stephanie told me the same thing before she left," Chris said, glancing around as if a monster would jump around the corner at any given moment.

"Yeah, I just thought you should know since you put yourself right into the danger zone. I don't know your motives for marrying Stephanie, but you've got a huge target on your back now because of it. A huge target."

"I know…but she needed me," Chris said plainly.

"You really like her don't you?" Edge said, his serious face turning mischievous as a smirk played on his lips.

"She's my wife, I love her," Chris lied to keep up the charade. Nobody could know the true nature of their relationship. It was a farce that they needed to keep going in order to get Stephanie all the power that she wanted and more than she ever could've dreamed.

"Well man, loving her has put you into some deep shit," Edge said. "But keep your eye out…"

"I will, thanks for the heads up," Chris said, shaking Edge's hand.

Chris headed down the hallway to his dressing room, opening up the door cautiously, but there was nothing there. He sighed in relief as he found nothing out of order there. He threw his stuff on the couch and sat down, leaning forward, covering his face with his hands. First Stephanie and then Edge warned him of something going down. He couldn't let anyone get to him though. Certainly not Test who he found weaker than him.

There was a knock on the door and Chris looked towards it. He wasn't weak, he had never been weak in his life and he wasn't going to start now. Marrying Stephanie had just proved that to everyone. He got up and ran his hands through his hair before going to open the door and finding a police officer on the other side.

"Uh…hi," Chris said awkwardly.

"Are you Chris Jericho?" the man asked.

"Yeah, what's this all…oh my God, is Stephanie okay?" Chris asked, wondering if Stephanie had gotten into an accident on the way back to the hotel. In that moment, his heart dropped to his stomach in fear.

"No, but this is about a Mrs. Stephanie McMahon-Jericho. We got an anonymous tip on a domestic abuse case concerning you and your wife."

"What? Are you kidding me?" Chris asked with a laugh. "You must be mistaken."

"I don't think so sir," the man said. He lifted up a sheet of paper, "If you'd cooperate with us and come down with us to the station, we'd like to ask you a few questions."

"I've never hit my wife," Chris said.

"According to the report we received, Mrs. McMahon-Jericho suffered a broken nose that you gave her," he said, reading off the report he had.

"Yes, she has a broken nose, but it was an accident."

"Sir, please just come with me to the station and we'll try and get this all cleared up, but we're definitely going to need to see you down there. We try not to take any domestic abuse cases lightly as we like to protect people."

"Fine," Chris said, following the officer out of the dressing room. As he walked down the hallway, he saw Vince, Shane and Test standing near their office. He sent them a dirty look as he shook his head, disgusted by their behavior.

"Where you going Chris?" Test asked.

"I think you know where I'm going Test, made a little phone call did ya? You know exactly what happened and I'm sure you two were in on this as well?" Chris said to Vince and Shane.

"If you dare hit my little sister, what other course of action can I take?" Shane asked, giving a wave to Chris as the officer started to escort him out of the building. Chris sucked at his teeth a little, not believing they would stoop so low.

Stephanie, for her part was rather oblivious, waiting for the show to start any second now. What turned her head was a segment before the show showing something that had happened earlier with Chris getting arrested. Her eyes widened as she remembered the look that Test had given her when she was dropping Chris off. She screamed through her teeth and snatched up her things before going to her car and driving straight to the arena.

Knowing her father and brother, they wouldn't give evidence that her nose getting broken was an accident so she snuck into the arena and headed straight for the production truck herself, making sure to keep herself undercover so nobody would find out that she was there. She got to the truck and opened the door, heading straight for the head of production.

"Hey Jim," Stephanie said cordially.

"Oh hey Stephanie," Jim said. "What can I do for you?"

"You can get me a tape of last week's show," she insisted.

"Sure, any reason you need it?" he asked, going over to a large shelf of tapes and going to the bottom to pick one up, handing it to her.

"Yeah, my family wants to mess with me and I'm messing right back. Thanks for this Jim."

"No problem Stephanie, you have a good evening."

"Oh, I will."

With tape in hand, Stephanie snuck back out of the arena, forcing herself not to go straight to her family. She called 411 on her cell phone and asked where the nearest police station was, getting directions there. When she arrived, she went straight up to the desk and demanded to see whoever was in charge of Chris's case.

"What can I ya for Miss?" someone said, coming up to her.

"My husband was taken in tonight, Chris Jericho, for domestic abuse and I'd like to talk to someone about that."

"Are you his wife?" he asked, looking at her nose.

"Yes, I'm his wife, the one he didn't hit," Stephanie said. "And I've got tape to prove it, so if you'll just shove this tape in one of your damn VCR's, you'll see that my husband is hardly an abusive guy to me, and you'll let him go before I decide to sue this entire police station for slander."

"Okay, calm down," he said.

"I will not calm down when my husband is falsely accused, now find me a fucking VCR and then we'll talk rationally."

"Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to calm down."

"_Sir_, I'm going to have to ask you to realize that my husband is sitting in there," she said, gesturing towards the back, "with people thinking he hit me, and I'm here to tell you that's simply untrue so you can let him go and focus your time on catching real criminals."

The officer sighed, knowing he was getting nowhere with this conversation. "Okay ma'am, follow me."

Stephanie gave him a smile, "Thank you."

She was led to a room where Chris was sitting, bored out of his mind. He had been asked, and asked again about what had happened and he had told them over and over again. He looked up and saw Stephanie and smiled, raising himself as she launched herself into his arms, hugging him tightly. She was a sight for sore eyes for him and he hugged her back.

"I told you to be careful," she said playfully.

"Yeah, didn't anticipate this," Chris said.

"I brought the tape from last week, so you should be let out of here soon, and if you aren't, then I'm going to have to beat someone up," she told him. "And look, I even came out of hiding for you."

"Thanks," he said, "your family sure loves to play dirty."

"They do, but don't worry, the wheels are turning and we're going to get them back for this. We're going to get them so much that they won't even know what hit them."

"Are we?"

"Oh yeah, we're going to hit them Chris, and they are going to fall."


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews guys, I appreciate them, and I'm glad that you seem to be enjoying where this story is going, and I hope you continue to review. :)

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"You know it's okay to not be angry the entire night."

"Why aren't you more upset?" Stephanie asked, turning to Chris. "You should be even more pissed off than I am, you were the one sitting in jail being accused of hitting your wife. I mean, you should be shoving people out of your way."

"I'm not going to do that," Chris said. "Besides, you came and saved me, you're my personal hero."

Stephanie blushed prettily and ducked her head. "I wasn't going to let them think that my husband hit me. You aren't that kind of guy, I can tell. You're too nice."

"You think I'm nice?" he asked as he leaned in to whisper in her ear. She hit him across the chest and he chuckled and stepped back. "Wow, now I think I know who really has to go to jail, if I have to suffer this abuse from you."

"You'll get used to it," she said, wrapping her arm around his waist. "So come on, why aren't you angry like me?"

"Because it's stupid to get angry, that's just what they want to happen. They want me to get angry and go out there and yell and call them names, that's what they want. Then I'll just be what they said I was last week, some stupid oaf. I'm not going to give them the satisfaction."

"You're way too mature for me," she told him.

He looked down at her and smiled, "You're young, so it's allowed. But I think you're a lot more mature than people think of you."

"So says you, I don't think anyone else believes that," she said grudgingly. "Everyone thinks I'm some little baby, a little girl who can't make her own decisions, just once, just for a little while, I'd like to be in charge and show everyone just what I'm made of, you know. It's not fair that everyone thinks I'm not smart enough to be running things."

"So let's do it."

"Let's do what?" she inquired.

"Let's take over," he said excitedly.

Stephanie looked at him in wonder. His eyes were sparkling with mischief and ambition. She couldn't possibly do what he was saying though. There was no way that she could do that…or could she? Maybe she shouldn't be a shrinking violet any longer. Maybe it _was_ time to take over and show what she was made of. But she had no idea how to proceed with that. Her father and her brother had such a stronghold over the company.

"But how?" she asked. "There's no way my father relinquishes power. No way."

"We'll think of something," he said, grabbing both her hands. "Think about it, Stephanie. We could take over and make this company better than its ever been. We could do anything and everything we wanted, we'd be in charge."

She looked down to their clasped hands. She believed in Chris and she found it funny that she used to hate to hear his voice. Now it was like…she trusted him, and she didn't know when that had started exactly. But she trusted what he said and she believed in him. She had to believe because as of right now, he was pretty much the only person she had, and certainly the only person who believed in her abilities.

She also had to admit, she loved when he held her hands. He was gently rubbing his thumb over her knuckles and she wondered if he knew that he was doing that. He was a great comfort to her, and she gave him a smile. He stared into her eyes with his clear blue ones. She saw the corners of his mouth turn up a little bit in a smile. She nodded, slowly at first, but becoming more eager as the moments wore on.

Her own smile was soon matched by his own as he pulled her into a hug right there in the middle of the hallway. She laughed against his shoulder as she brought her arms around his waist. "Do you really think we can do this?"

"Of course I can, with the both of us thinking about it, we're going to think of a way to get them the hell out of the picture."

"You know what I want to do first?" she said, the excitement starting to build in her voice.

"What?"

"I want to get back at Test for doing what he did to you…and to me," she said as she gingerly touched her nose. He laughed softly as he took her hand away from her face.

"You look gorgeous, don't worry," he told her. "Stop being self-conscious about your nose, there's no damage, it's still as pretty as it was before you broke it."

"Thanks," she told him softly. "Not that I'm vain or anything."

"Uh huh," he smirked and she shoved his hand away from her own. "Oh no, does this mean you want Test to come after me now?"

"Yes, yes it does," she said, flouncing off down the hallway. Chris watched her walk away and licked his lips as he took in the sway of her hips. Every day that he spent with her, he admitted her wanted her a little bit more. If he had to spend years with her, there'd be no way he could keep his hands to himself. He anticipated being on-screen with her just so that he could touch her. He knew that he was just headed for disaster, but he couldn't help it. Stephanie wasn't his dream woman, because dream women didn't exist, but she was about as close to perfect for him as they came.

He stunned himself with that thought. He thought Stephanie was perfect for him? When had that crept into his brain? He knew that he was attracted to her, but falling for her? He thought for a moment and realized that, yes, he was falling for her. He wasn't in love with her, he knew that straight off the bat, but falling for her, yes, he admitted to himself, and that just made their relationship all the more complicated.

"Chris, are you coming!" Stephanie said impatiently as she stood more than twenty feet in front of him.

Chris shook himself from his daze and nodded mutely, "Yeah, I'm coming."

"Well then hurry up," she told him, waving her arm at him. He jogged up to her and took her hand in his, ignoring the sensation of it. Stephanie would never in a million years want him if he wasn't going to do this for her, if he hadn't helped her. He guessed that he would just have to take it and savor the time that he had with her. "I think I've got an idea."

"Really?" he asked.

"Yeah, it's nothing we can execute tonight, but I definitely think that we can get the ball started rolling this week on it. It's good," she told him, looking around to see if anyone was around as she pushed Chris towards their locker room.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's the hurry?"

"I want to tell you," she told him playfully as he tried to get behind her. "Chris, you're wasting precious planning time."

"Well maybe if you weren't pushing me," he laughed as they fell against the wall in a heap of laughs. Chris looked at her as she leaned against the wall and for a moment, he was enchanted by her, and he couldn't recall ever using the word enchanted in an encounter with a woman…ever.

Yet, Stephanie was so different and he almost wondered how she didn't see this in herself. He wondered how she let herself be controlled over and over by her father and brother when she didn't even need to bother with doing so. She was such a powerful figure and she had no idea whatsoever the power that she held. He wanted her to see what he saw, he wanted everyone to see what he saw, and then he gagged at how mushy he was being.

Stephanie, for her part, was just looking at Chris's lips. She liked when he kissed her, it was definitely different from Test, who always seemed to just revere her. She hated being revered. "Chris, come on…"

Chris nodded and they went to their locker room, not speaking to each other until he opened the door for her and she walked inside. She checked to make sure there were no video cameras around because she didn't want this taped and then show during the show later on. She knew there were spies afoot, all the time, and her father's lackeys could be lurking around at any moment. She wasn't going to take the chance with something that big.

"We need to wrest the control away from my father," she stated plainly and for the life of him, he saw her words leading him nowhere near this plan.

"Yeah, we do, he won't give it up willingly."

"Exactly, but, my father doesn't really hold all the power, I mean, he does, he thinks he does, but he has to still be approved by the board of directors. Majority rules with them, so…this is what I'm saying, we can--"

"Get the board of directors to oust your father and put you into control," he finished.

"Yes," she told him, her eyes widening with delight. They were sparkling with mischief and she eagerly awaited what he was going to say.

"But won't they give it to your mom or to your brother?" Chris asked, and she frowned. That wasn't the response that she was hoping for from him. She wanted him to jump up and down and congratulate her for being brilliant. She refused to feel upset by his rather disheartening reaction.

"They could, but they won't," she told him.

"How can you be sure?"

"Well, if we can get the board on my side, and I have a plan on how to do that, yes, there's a chance they'd go to my mom first, or to Shane, but not after what they're going to do to me tonight."

"What they're going to do to you tonight?" Chris asked, confused.

"Yes, they're going to humiliate me," Stephanie said. "My dad may have his sources, but what he doesn't know is that I have my sources too. And that source is currently making it seem like I'm going to humiliate them. So my dad is obviously going to counterattack, but his plan is going to backfire on him. Then, when my mother and brother join in, bam, they're out."

"How are they out?"

"I'm going to show the board of directors that they show extreme bias towards a certain part of the company, and that their morale and character are not up to snuff of the WWF president. With my father, all I have to do is show them tape of him being the Higher Power and they'll think he's incompetent, and who does that leave? Me…and I just got my twenty-five percent of the company anyways. The board of directors will get rid of my dad and instate me."

"Well, how can I argue with that?" Chris asked, looking at her.

"So you really think its good?" she asked.

"Yeah, I do, I think it's a solid plan. I can see it happening and when it does, your dad is going to go through the roof, it'll be hilarious."

"Great," she said, clapping her hands. "Now I just have to wait for later tonight."

The time came for Stephanie to go out there. She requested that Chris stay in the back while she went out to talk to the crowd. She got cheered as she came to the ring and she smiled at everyone. She grabbed a microphone and cleared her throat as the cheers died down.

"Hello Indianapolis, last week, something terrible happened to my husband," Stephanie said, pouting at the cameras. "He was taken away by the police and accused of beating me up and breaking my nose when all of you know that it wasn't his fault, right?"

The crowd agreed and started a "Y2J" chant. So far so good.

"Yeah, I thought it was terrible too, but luckily I had taped proof that it was an accident because my husband would never hit me. He cares about me way too much for that," she explained, and that was the truth, he cared about her. "But what my family did was heinous and uncalled for, and to think that my former fiancé was in on it too, it sickens me. It sickens me so much that I decided that I would get a little bit of--"

Just like she thought it would, the first strains of "No Chance" poured into the arena. She turned to the Titantron and feigned shock at seeing her family standing before her. In reality, she wasn't shocked as she had gleaned onto some facts in her twenty-three odd years of living in the McMahon family. Rule number one, they were quite predictable.

"Stephanie, before you get angry with us, we did what we had to do to try and show you what an asshole you're married to," Shane said.

"He's not an asshole," Stephanie defended him.

"And you're not a slut," Shane countered and Stephanie gasped.

"Excuse me?" Stephanie asked, indignant.

"You run off with a guy you barely know and marry him while being engaged to another guy? That screams slut to me," Shane told her, more clearly this time.

Keep milking it, Stephanie thought to herself, "What? How can you say that to me, your own sister? Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"Not when you go around whoring yourself out, even Mom agrees," Shane answered.

"Mom?" Stephanie whimpered.

"This is behavior unbefitting of someone of your stature, Stephanie," Linda told her firmly. "This isn't how we raised you, this isn't how _I _raised you. To go around marrying men you don't know for laughs. To leave a man at the altar and tell him in no uncertain terms that you never loved him."

"But I love Chris," she protested, knowing the board would eat this up. She would just have to make a meeting for next Monday when her family was here at the show. She would fake some sort of illness to get out of it.

"You don't know what you're doing," Linda said. "You're an irresponsible child and you should listen to your father and me. We didn't raise you to be the kind of hussy who goes out and marries the first buffoon who looks good to her."

"You three can go to hell!" Stephanie yelled as she threw down her microphone and stormed backstage through the side of the stage. But she was all smiles when she got back there. If that wasn't enough to convince the board to relinquish control to her, she would just bring up other things. She knew she could find dirt on her family. She was a McMahon and there were always secrets. Soon the power would be hers and Chris's, and her family would just have to deal with it. They were going to get the rug snatched out from right underneath them.

And she was going to enjoy watching them fall.


	18. Chapter 18

Stephanie sucked on her teeth a little as she watched the board of directors talk amongst themselves. She had just given an impassioned speech about the way her family had treated her over the past few months, and how it had affected the company as a whole. Stephanie was standing outside the large glass window the overlooked the boardroom. They were talking about her in there and she couldn't hear them and it frustrated her. She wished her father had never gotten the room sound-proofed.

She folded her arms in front of her and turned away from the maddening scene. "What are you looking at?"

"Would you calm down?" Chris asked her. "You're going to melt that glass if you stare at it any longer."

"I just wish that they would go faster!" Stephanie said, pacing again. Chris rolled his eyes, which Stephanie caught as she was turning. She stopped and tilted her head to look at him. She blinked a couple times, then spoke, "Did you just roll your eyes at me?"

"What?" he asked, acting innocent.

"You just rolled your eyes at me," she said, her pitch getting higher. "Am I bothering you?"

"Yes, you are bothering me a little bit," he told her, standing up and going in front of her. Stephanie glared at him as she scoffed. He laughed and said, "Come on Princess, you know that I'm only joking."

"This is _not _a time to joke," Stephanie told him, frowning and turning away from him. "This is our entire future on the line right here, and you're just sitting there like this is nothing!"

"I'm not sitting here like this is nothing," Chris said to her. "I'm fully aware that this is something, but standing there, pacing, glaring at everyone through this glass wall is not going to do you any good."

"And what _would _do me some good?" Stephanie asked, looking at him with a raised eyebrow, wondering if he could possibly prove that he knew all the answers to her questions. She wanted him to challenge her, make her angry, anything that would detract away from her sweaty palms and frayed nerves.

"I think that we should get the hell out of here, get something to eat and go back to the hotel and just lounge around."

She guffawed and stared at him incredulously for a few moments before looking at him straight in the eye. "Lounge around? You want to _lounge around_? I don't think this is the appropriate time for lounging around, but that's just my opinion."

"It's the perfect time to do that. Man, don't tell that you've been forced to be 'on' for your entire life. You can just wind down you know, not worry too much. The world is going to still keep on revolving if you aren't doing something important."

"Really? I didn't know that, thank you Mr. Jericho," she said sarcastically as she went back to watching the discussion taking place in her view, but completely out of her earshot. It was like watching a silent movie and nobody was holding up the cards with the words that were being said.

"You know, I'm just trying to help, but if you don't want my help, fine, whatever, I don't give a shit either way," Chris told her. "When you decide you don't want to try to melt glass with your eyes, come find me."

"Where are you going?" she demanded to know.

"Why do you give a shit?" Chris snapped at her. He was getting tired of Stephanie's attitude right now and though he knew that she was under a lot of stress at the moment, the way she was treating him was uncalled for. It was moments like these where he immediately regretted the fact he had even married this woman.

Stephanie sighed, and took a deep breath to calm herself, knowing that alienating Chris at this point would do more harm than good, "I'm sorry, Chris, you're right, I'm not helping anything by sitting here and glaring at them."

"Thank you, I'm glad you realize that," Chris said, but he wasn't saying it to be mean, he was just telling her the truth. "So why don't we get out of here and just have fun or something, take your mind off of this."

"Well--" The door opened and Stephanie immediately turned to the man walking out, Mr. Whittaker.

"Stephanie, we're going to need more time to deliberate with this, but we'll definitely get back to you within a week's time, does that sound fair to you?"

Stephanie wanted to scream that it wasn't fair to her. She wanted to know right this second and she hated that these people held her plans in the balance. The old bags should've decided by now. She sneered for a moment before masking it with a kindly smile. "Of course that would be fine, thank you for taking your time with this, I wouldn't want the decision to be a bad one. I only want what's best for this company."

"Yes, that's very apparent, have a nice day," he said before wandering back inside.

"Okay, how about I get you out of here before you explode?" Chris asked her.

"They couldn't figure it out today?" she asked herself. She shook her head. "You'd think that they could figure it out today instead of dragging it out. What more do they need to see, my father gallivanting around with all of his female employees, talk about sexual harassment."

"You married a wrestler," he pointed out.

"But we're married, and if people think we're having sex, which we aren't," she said quickly, "it's okay because we're married and it's allowed, with my father, he's supposed to be faithful to my mother, not cheat on her in front of everyone."

"Okay, calm down," Chris told her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Maybe we can break that no sex thing, how about we spend our afternoon doing that because I'm definitely behind that plan."

Stephanie threw his arms off her shoulders playfully, "Get sex out of your head, Chris."

"Okay, okay, I thought I'd try," he told her, throwing his right arm over her shoulder. "Let's go get some food and we'll go back to the hotel, how does that sound?"

"I just wish that they would give me their decision now, I mean, then we could start with everything that we've wanted to do. We can rule, Chris, don't you get how big this is. This is what I wanted, this is why I married you and we're so close."

"Yeah, and I married you for the title, but I don't see it around my waist," he told her, looking into her eyes. "It takes time, we just need to wait it out. We'll both get what we want, and if this fails, then I'll think of something else."

She liked that he had confidence. Test had confidence, but it was usually not the confidence that she needed or wanted. He was never confident in the way that you really believed he was confident. Chris, on the other hand, he commanded attention and he had a cockiness that could be annoying unless you knew him, and then you knew that he was just being himself and that his confidence was one of the more refreshing aspects of his character. She wished she could be so self-assured, but deep down, she was still that little girl who was scared of her daddy.

But being around Chris made her feel stronger. Not in the sense that she could suddenly bench-press 300 pounds or something, but in the sense that she felt like she could do more. She knew that Chris had touted that she needed to come out of her shell, that he saw something in her when nobody else was looking. He saw a fire inside her that she hadn't let come out, that she hid behind sweater sets and an innocent face. When she was with him, she felt that fire burning inside of her, she felt stronger and better, and she liked it very much.

"You'll think of something else?" she asked.

He smirked at her, and she had to love it, "I always think of something."

She hugged him spontaneously, just silently thanking him for being there for her. He was a little tense and first, but then loosened up and hugged him back. She liked knowing that he was there. She smiled and pulled away, grabbing his hand. He looked surprised by this gesture too, but she just led him towards the elevator, grabbing her purse on the way out.

"So, what are we going to eat?"

It didn't take them long to find a good take-out place and then bring their haul back to their hotel room. Chris put the food on the couch as Stephanie changed out of her business clothes and into her more comfortable sweatpants and t-shirt, pulling her perfectly coiffed hair in a ponytail. She went to take her diamond earrings out of her ears and her fingers fumbled before she dropped the back of her earring on the floor, hearing it clatter and then nothing.

"Damn," Stephanie said, getting on her hands and knees.

Chris, who had heard her from the bedroom, looked towards the door. "What happened?"

"I lost the back of my earring," she told him, poking her head out of the door. I heard it fall, but I can't see it."

"Here, let me help you look," Chris said, walking into the bathroom and getting down on the floor with her. Unfortunately, they had gotten a suite that evening so the bathroom was rather large.

Chris laughed a little as he was down on his hands and knees hunting for the back of Stephanie's earring. "You know, this is why I just don't take my earrings out."

"Well aren't you just the most special guy in the whole world?" she said sarcastically as she continued to search for part of her earring.

"You should be," he joked as they continued to look.

They both searched a separate part of the bathroom, looking stupid in the process as they went around on their hands and knees. They converged in the middle of the bathroom, hitting their heads together, and both crying out in pain at the move. They looked up at the same time and something changed in the air. It grew thicker with chemistry, and electric charge that neither one was prepared for.

Stephanie took a deep, slow breath, and it felt like when she let out her breath, it stayed in front of her like a fog. Chris's eyes were so blue, so blue and clear, and she felt like she was almost seeing right through them. His hair was pulled back from his face, but in their search, some strands had fallen out and were framing his face.

Chris was equally smitten by her. She was so different than what he had originally thought. He had really thought her a little bit of a spoiled Princess, but she was so much more, and every time he found something different, he fell a little bit more. It helped that she was totally gorgeous and if she ever invited him into her bed, he would jump at the chance. Hey, he was a guy, if he hadn't thought about that, it would be weirder than having that thought a lot. He stared at her lips for a moment, and unconsciously started moving in a little bit more, as if he was going to kiss her. Stephanie held her breath, but the moment was ruined when the hotel room phone rang.

"I should get that, I gave the board this phone number," Stephanie said quietly.

"Yeah, go find out our fate," Chris told her, watching there as she walked into the bedroom. He let out a shuddering breath when she was out of sight. He didn't know what had just happened, but the tension in that bathroom had become palpable.

It didn't help that he knew the nuances of Stephanie's lips, having kissed them on-screen. It didn't help that he knew the way her hips felt as he pulled her to him. It certainly wasn't helping his composure right now as he thought about going into that bedroom, throwing her over his shoulder and dumping her on the bed before he had his way with her, no, that didn't help at all, not at all.

So caught up was he in this thoughts that he didn't see Stephanie walk into the bathroom and stand over him. He looked up at her from his knees, wondering what she was about to tell him. He should've figured from the look on her face, but he was still dumbfounded by how much he wanted to kiss her just then. Her smile turned to a grin.

"We got it."


	19. Chapter 19

Stephanie had asked the board to keep their decision quiet until she had sufficient time with which to inform her family of the switch. While it wasn't standard protocol, the fact that Stephanie was the new president swayed their opinions towards keeping things quiet. With her in power now, they pretty much answered to her, although they also had the power to oust her, but she was going to make sure that didn't happen. She was going to have them on her side in all of this, and the only way to do that was to stay on their good side.

So here she sat, at Raw, still acting like she had no power, but that would change later when she informed her family and the world that she was in charge now and she called the shots. Well, that wasn't entirely true because Chris called the shots too. While she was going to keep her mother on as CEO (it was the least she could do), she had hired Chris as kind of a consultant for her. Sure, it was probably just a title, nothing more than an "on the surface" position, but he was going to rule right alongside with her. He deserved it for getting her what she wanted.

She realized then that Chris had kept his promise. Sure, she had been part of the reason, and she had taken the bulk of the time when trying to persuade the board, but he had initiated this. She never would've had the confidence to do this if she wasn't with him. When he came to her that night in Vegas, she had thought herself stupid for wanting to go along with his plan. She was supposed to get married to someone else and she had instead married this guy on a whim, a complete whim. His words had charmed her to the point where she believed completely in him. And he had kept his promise to her, and that made her smile.

"You look kind of slutty, but then kind of hot," Chris said as he walked into their dressing room.

She laughed and looked down at her ensemble. Yes, it was a little more risqué than she had been used to, but with new beginnings came new images, and she wanted to project the fact that she was the boss now. It wasn't anything that any of the divas wore, God no, but she wanted to look a little bit nicer than she had when she was in her sweater-sets and pants and long, boring skirts. She was currently wearing a short black mini-skirt with a slit up the left thigh and a tight white blouse, only buttoned up half-way so she was showing off some cleavage, with a white silky bra peeking out underneath.

"I thought a new image was in order," Stephanie shrugged as she sat there. "I _am_ the boss now, right?"

"That you are," he told her, licking his lips a little, but trying to fight his obvious attraction to her. Seeing her in these kinds of outfits did nothing but turn him on immensely. Before Stephanie had married him, he had thought she was pretty, but way too wholesome, and he figured that was her adopted image and not the person that she really saw herself as. He was glad that _this_ was the person she saw herself as.

"So you really think that I look slutty?" she wondered, looking down at her outfit.

"No, no," he told her quickly, not wanting her to change at all. "I just think you look nice is all."

"I'm not wearing this stuff when we're not here, you know, I don't go around in these kinds of things, just so you know."

"I know," he said to her, knowing that when they were away from the cameras, she dressed casually, like anyone her age would, jeans, t-shirts, nice clothes, but nothing fancy or…revealing. Not that he wasn't happy with what she was revealing. Stephanie looked at Chris strangely, tilting her head to look at him.

"Chris, what are you staring at?" she asked innocently and Chris shook his head. He had been undressing her with his eyes, and each day he found himself fantasizing about her more and more, but he had to keep his hands to himself. This wasn't the kind of relationship where they could touch and kiss and caress whenever they wanted to. He had to keep his mind about this. It was a business relationship, nothing more.

"Sorry, I was just making sure you had no loose threads or anything," Chris tried to cover for himself. Stephanie blushed a little under his scrutiny, and the room suddenly seemed to be getting smaller and smaller by the second.

"Of course I don't have loose threads, this is an expensive shirt," she said, standing up and smoothing it out against her flat stomach. Chris watched her hands as she kept moving them across her stomach. God, how could he have let himself fall for someone he couldn't really have? Any other girl, sure, he wouldn't have a problem, he was Chris Jericho for God's sakes, but Stephanie was in a different league. He hadn't thought that when he first met her, thought she was just like every other girl in the world, willing to drop her panties with the slightest wink from him, but she wasn't like that at all. He wasn't sure if she wasn't attracted to him, or had great conviction, but she never seemed interested. That made her seem unattainable to Chris, and that was frustrating, but he had to admire it too. She was different, and he loved that.

"You look fine," he told her.

"Mrs. McMahon-Jericho, the show is starting in five minutes and you said that you wanted the top of the show," a stagehand said from behind the door. Stephanie looked positively giddy at this development

"Thank you," Stephanie said, trying to mask her excitement. She turned to Chris, who could so plainly see it and he had to smile at it. He had put that smile on her face, however indirectly, he had helped put it there, and for that he was most proud. "Okay, it's time…you ready?"

"Am I ready, of course I'm ready," she said, fixing her hair a little, "Time to go out and get what we want."

"What do we want?"

"Oh, don't worry, I've got my first order of business all lined up," she winked at him as she headed towards the door, her hips swaying a little. She just looked so self-assured, he was so attracted to that kind of confidence. And the way her ass looked in that skirt, that helped a lot too.

She hardly noticed though as she walked down the hallway, Chris tailing her almost like a puppy dog trailing obediently after its owner. She sucked at her teeth a little as she reached the gorilla, going over to one of the production guys and saying something in hushed tones that Chris couldn't hear. She nodded and looked over at Chris with a sly smile and he wondered what she was up to.

"I'm just making sure they cue up _your _music," she told him as she walked over to speak with him. He smiled at that; he liked that she would come out to his music, it somehow made him feel like they were more connected.

A few minutes later, their music hit and she was grabbing his hand and pulling him onto the stage. She walked with a certain air about her as the cheers for them rang out into the arena. Chris figured that they were being cheered simply because all the fans hated Vince and the rest of the McMahons. If Stephanie separated herself from that, then the fans were bound to cheer them. It was a welcome change for the both of them, since the two of them had kind of been considered what was commonly called a heel.

Chris went up ahead of Stephanie and held the ropes for her, which she stepped through graciously, glad that she didn't have to bend over too much and reveal too much of herself. She grabbed a microphone from the side and waited for Chris to come stand beside her before she started talking. She knew what she was going to do tonight, and all it served to do was put a big grin on her face. She cleared her throat and with Chris silently urging her on, she began to speak.

"I know that you're all so anxious to get this show underway," Stephanie started. "And get some matches underway as well, but there was an important issue that I needed to discuss before the show could go any further. It involves a very big aspect of the WWF, and I think that I needed to tell the fans personally, announce it here on Raw where the entire world could see."

"There's something else too, right Steph?" Chris said, speaking into her microphone as he leaned over her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "Some people that we to ask out here, right?"

"Yes Chris, that's right," she said brightly, almost overacting. She turned towards the entrance and spoke again, "Mom, Dad, Shane, if you would like to come out here, I think that you would enjoy in this announcement too."

The crowd started chanting, "Shane's a pussy," as Stephanie and Chris giggled, turning to the fans and making a mock "shh" gesture, like Shane wouldn't come out there if they didn't stop chanting. Stephanie knew that her family wouldn't be able to resist coming out there. She was rewarded for this thought a moment later when Vince's music hit and the rest of her family stepped out onto the stage, her father and brother looking annoyed, the latter shooting daggers into Chris's skin that would surely pierce him if they were real. Stephanie gave them all a big grin.

"Thank you so much for coming out here, guys," Stephanie said, hand over heart, pretending to be touched. "I just wanted to share this exciting announcement with you."

"Stephanie…are you pregnant?" Linda asked, alarmed.

"Oh, no," Stephanie said, shaking her head profusely. "Not a chance. You see, I'm going to be very, very busy. I don't think that I would have time for a child right now, Chris do you think that we'd have time for a child right now?"

"With the big development, no way," Chris shook his head.

"What big development?" Shane asked, or more like demanded to know, staring his sister down. Stephanie giggled behind her hand a little.

"Well, you see, there's been this really interesting thing that happened. And I really wanted it to happen, so I went after what I wanted, isn't that what you always told me?" Stephanie inquired, sounding like an innocent little girl.

"Stephanie, what is this all about?" Vince asked, tired of this game that she was trying to play. He didn't want to beat around the bush. His daughter had called him out here for some stupid reason and he wanted to get it over with right now. "I think you should just tell us."

"Well, I don't have to do anything you want me to do," Stephanie told him. "In fact, none of the wrestlers here tonight have to do what you tell them to do."

"What?" Vince asked, still in the dark about what she was saying. He had no idea the bomb that was about to be dropped on his head in five…

Four…

Three…

"You are looking at the new President of the WWF," Stephanie said proudly.

She had always been way too anxious to tell someone something important.

Vince's eyes narrowed as he stood there, frozen almost as Shane's eyes widened. Linda didn't even know how to react, but Shane was definitely being the most animated. He put his hand on Vince's shoulder, as if to steady him. Vince was shaking with anger and Stephanie giggled as she looked to Chris. This was exactly what she had wanted. She wanted her family to be in such shock that they would leave and hopefully never come back.

"You're lying," Shane told her.

"Oh, am I?" Stephanie asked. "Just ask the board of directors who the president is. I'm 100 positive that they're going to say it's me. I went to see them, and seeing as how you and Shane haven't been exactly…supportive of me, you too Mom, they decided that the company would be better off in the hands of someone else, some other McMahon, and that other McMahon happened to be me."

"You can't do this!" Vince shouted at her.

"I already did," Stephanie told him, nodding her head. "Didn't I, Chris?"

"She did," Chris told her family. "I was there when she made her speech to the board, and I was there when she got the call, you're looking at the new WWF President, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho."

"Don't worry, Mom, you'll still be the CEO, but you are on probation, I have the board keeping tabs on you, as for you Dad, well, I guess I could still keep you on as a figurehead of some sort, maybe just have you still be the face of this company, maybe, and Shane, well, you know, you don't do much around here anyways, so what's the bother," Stephanie told them as the crowd started to react to the news. There were mostly cheers for the duo in the ring and that made Stephanie stronger.

"No…no…" Vince was having a breakdown now.

"You won't get away with this, Stephanie!" Shane said as he started to lead Vince out of the area, Linda walking shell-shocked behind the two of them. "You can't just take the company away from Dad, you can't!"

"It's too late for that, Shane, you all should've thought about that before you decided to control me, so guess what, now _I_ control _you_, how do you like it?" she sneered.

"We were protecting you!" Shane argued, even as Vince was starting to tremble from the shock of losing the control of the company to his daughter. He looked to almost be going into a catatonic state.

"Protecting me? Or trying to get me to do everything _your _way?" she asked. "I don't think so, Shane, I run things around here now."

"I have to…I have to leave," Vince said, gripping onto his son. He had just lost the control of the company and it was weighing on him so much that he was about to faint. Shane led him out to the cackling laughter of his sister and her husband.

"Well, now that that's over with, we can get down to the real business. I think that we should have a Fatal Four-Way match at the Royal Rumble to determine the WWF Champion, and my husband will be the first man announced for that match, besides the champion, Big Show of course, unless he loses it between now and then. The other two will be determined at my discretion, that's all for now. Welcome to the _new_ McMahon in power."

Chris looked at Stephanie, a little in disbelief before she walked over to him and kissed him. She seemed so into the kiss that he responded immediately, licking her lips as they pulled away. Her eyes were dark, but dancing, as she bit her lip. He shook his head a little and leaned in so they were ever so close.

"You made that match for me." She gave him a small smile, reserved just for him, and not caring if everyone was staring at them.

"You kept your promise, now it's time for me to keep mine."


	20. Chapter 20

"_Stephanie, this will not stand!"_

Stephanie giggled as she played the message again, frowning as she looked at Chris, who was sitting at the counter of their home. The grin on her face was luminous and she had to push play again to listen to it. Chris snickered and watched her giddiness. He liked seeing it. It was such a departure from the way she had been when they first met, stand-offish, bitchy, and closed off somehow.

"My God, my dad sounds _so_ mad in that message," Stephanie said, leaning on the counter across from him. "I wonder what he's going to try to do."

"Kidnap you, brainwash you, make you marry someone more suitable than me."

"Yes, I can see him doing all of those things, but then I could just fire him and not even keep him as the figure-head. If I did that though, I think his head would explode," she told him. "He would just completely freak out."

"Yeah, I kind of want to see that happen now," Chris told her, eyes wide. "We should probably get going though, our flight to Miami is in a couple of hours, and I would think the fans are expecting the new controlling body of the WWF to be in the house tonight."

"I do think they would expect us there," she nodded, giving him a smirk for his troubles. "You know what would be extra fun?"

"Oh, I don't know, but I figure that you're going to enlighten me."

"What if, when my family gets there, and you know they'll be there, and during the show so they think that they can just sneak in without me knowing, I have them banned from the arena?" she asked, her eyes lighting up. "They'd never expect it, them to be out there, thinking they're going to get in, and then, bam, they have to leave."

"Wow, that's pretty vindictive of you," he told her.

"I think they deserve it though. After that horrible display last week, I think it's the least they deserve. They are nothing more than embarrassments than to the new president of the company, I'm trying to project an image here, and what they pulled, that's hardly an image."

He laughed at that, "Yeah, because we're trying to push a show where people can be proud to watch…"

"A quality product," she added.

"Exactly, something that projects Chris Jericho and Stephanie McMahon."

"Stephanie McMahon-Jericho," Stephanie corrected and he nodded. "Yeah, I like the sound of that though, us ruling. It sounds good."

"You know, you really didn't have to--"

"Give you the title match," she finished for him. "How many times are you going to tell that to me? It's getting old now. I heard you the first time, and that was the only time you needed to say it."

"Okay, I get it, you're tired of hearing it," he said. "I just feel the need to reiterate the point. You didn't have to do it for me."

"That was part of the deal though," Stephanie told him, and he felt the faintest pang of hurt in his chest when she said that. It was so faint he almost didn't feel it, but he did feel it and it reminded him of just what they were.

Sometimes he wondered if she could ever be as attracted to him as he was to her. He didn't think it was possible. Stephanie had looked at this marriage as a business deal from the very beginning and never gave him any inkling that it would be more than that at any point. She was keeping it strictly business while he was falling more and more for her. It was kind of a lonely feeling, knowing that you were married to someone you could actually see yourself with for a long time, but knowing that it was only a matter of time before it ended because she only saw you as a business partner and not as someone she could love.

He didn't know that Stephanie was as attracted to Chris as he was to her. Sometimes she would think about going to his bedroom and just lying down next to him, feel what it was like to sleep with him next to her, his breath comforting her and reassuring her that she wasn't alone, that there was one person in the world who _got_ her and understood her without having to explain herself to them. Chris just understood her and how she worked and how she was, and she appreciated that a lot more than she let on.

"Yeah, part of the deal," he said, trying to keep the morose tones out of his voice. Stephanie tilted her head slightly and observed him. He rubbed the back of his neck as a defensive move. Stephanie reached her hand out and took his lightly in hers.

"Hey, what's up?" she asked quietly.

"What? What do you mean? Nothing's wrong," he said, obviously flustered.

"Are you sure, you're acting a little strange, I wouldn't want anything to be wrong with you," she told him. "We have to go and rule tonight, we get to make all the decisions and I'm going to need you by my side."

Words had never sounded sweeter, "Yeah?"

"Of course, who else am I going to get to be the muscle?" she asked jokingly. "Now come on, we're going to miss our flight if we're not careful, and I don't have the private jet at my disposal, I think that might be the next things that I work on."

"I would like use of the private jet," he smirked.

She pushed him out the door, "You would."

Stephanie immediately noticed something different in the air when they got to the arena. Everyone was suddenly friendlier with her, and she wondered if Chris noticed too. When he cast her a sidelong glance filled with a child-like glee, she knew that he realized it too. They both wore giddy expressions as they were greeted by pretty much everyone. The second they had realized she was in power, the sucking up had begin and she was going to bask in it.

"That was great!" Stephanie exclaimed as they entered their locker room for the evening. "Everyone is now trying to get on my good side, what a contrast from when I was just Daddy's Little Girl."

"They know that if they want to go places, they have to go through you," Chris said, and he was honest-to-goodness happy for her. She deserved this; she deserved to bask in the glow of the company because she had always been shoved into the background.

"Yeah, they do have to go through me, because I'm the boss now, and I'm not going to be like my father in that respect, maybe I'll be worse," she joked. "I'll be a tyrant."

"I don't see you as the tyrant type," he told her. "You are really pretty tonight though, I just thought I'd say that, maybe that's why all the guys were coming up to you, because they thought you looked really pretty tonight."

Stephanie blushed a little and said softly, "Thank you. That's really sweet of you to say."

He shrugged and went up to her and hugged her, "You are going to make a great boss, you're going to show everyone that you are the best there is, and you are going to be a million times better than your father."

Stephanie smiled into his shoulder, smelling his cologne embedded into his shirt. She wanted to bury herself against him and let him take care of her, but she was a strong, independent woman and she shouldn't need that. But she needed Chris, she realized, because without Chris, none of this would've even been possible. He kept thanking her for the title shot, but it seemed like she had so much more to thank him for, and she didn't know how to do that properly.

"You're nothing like I thought," she said instead, hoping that he would get what she was trying to say.

"What do you mean by that? Are you trying to tell me that I'm a horrible human being?"

"No," she giggled. "I just mean, you surprise me, is all. When I first met you, I really did think you were a jackass, but I was so wrong, I should've known that underneath that gruff, cocky exterior is a big softie."

"Hey, who are you calling a softie?" he asked, pretending to be indignant, "I'll have you know that I'm all man, and don't you forget that, okay?"

"Uh huh," she said, hugging him tightly again. "You're just a big teddy bear."

The door burst open and a startled Stephanie pulled away from Chris to see that X-Pac he just come inside the room without knocking. Stephanie folded her arms in front of her and looked at him critically, trying to intimidate him. Chris couldn't stop staring at Stephanie, just the way she automatically put herself in charge when the situation arose. He again wondered why nobody could see this woman inside the shell she used to be.

"Can we help you?" she asked testily.

"Hunter wants a match later," X-Pac told them. "He says that he wants to go against Big Show for the title, that he deserves the match."

"Oh really?" Stephanie scoffed. "And he just decided on his own that he was going to get a shot at it?"

"He deserves it," X-Pac told her. "I mean, come on, Stephanie, you know that he's the best there is around here, he should get that shot, you should give it to him."

"Oh, okay, well, what was I thinking? Of course he should just get it, and think that he's going to get it, forget the fact that _I'm_ in charge now, he'll just call his own shots. Look, my dad may have been a doormat for that man, but I'm not going to be, you tell him that he _is_ going to get a match tonight…"

"Awesome, you're the best, Steph!" X-Pac exclaimed. "Yo, Hunter! She gave in!"

Hunter sauntered into the room, "I knew you'd see things my way, Stephanie, but don't worry, I'll let your little husband have a title shot when I win it."

Stephanie licked her lips a little bit and she gazed at him. Chris could see her blood boiling right now. This is exactly why she had married him. This is the reason that she had agreed to everything. "Oh, no, Hunter, I don't see things your way, I'm sorry. You _are_ going to be in a match tonight, but it's going to be a handicap match against Big Show and Kane, I think that's fair. I was going to just put you in a match with Kane, but then…you know, you had to open your mouth so now you get to face them both…and…is there anything else, Chris?"

"I think that DX should be banned from ringside," Chris added.

Stephanie lit up, her eyes widening and sparkling in the light, "That's perfect! And yes, DX will be banned from ringside, if I so much as see anyone from your team on there, I will absolutely suspend all of you, understand?"

"Oh, so it's just your husband that gets the perks then?"

"Yeah, that's right, it _is_ just my husband that gets the perks, it's why he's my husband."

"You bitch," Hunter muttered.

"Hey!" Chris yelled at her. "Don't you call her that!"

"Don't worry, Chris," Stephanie said, placing a calming hand on his chest. "I don't think he's going to be spouting off by the time this night is over. If that's all you needed Hunter, X-Pac, then you can get the hell out of my office."

"This isn't over, Stephanie," Hunter threatened.

"Oh, it is, because I'm the boss," she told him, "so now you can get the hell out. And I won't be so nice the next time you come in here. You're lucky I didn't make it a cage match, just so you know."

Hunter and X-Pac stormed out and she turned and threw herself into Chris's arms, "Did you see that, Chris? Did you see me?"

"I sure did," he told her sweetly.

Then, in an act of impulsion, she kissed him, pressing her lips into his, parting her lips a little bit. Chris's eyes got as wide as saucers in that moment when he felt her lips on his. They weren't in front of the cameras, they were by themselves. It only lasted a moment, not enough time for him to fully get the taste of her mouth that he wanted. She pulled away, her eyes disbelieving as she gulped and pulled away from him completely.

"I'm sorry," Stephanie mumbled. "I shouldn't have done that, I'm sorry, I was just excited."

"Don't worry about it," he mumbled, trying to shoo away the sadness at her words. This was a business partnership, not a marriage, he had to remind himself. They were both just getting personal gains out of this, they didn't actually want to be married to each other. She was just a friend, that was it, and they had made a mistake in kissing like that.

Only it didn't feel like much of a mistake.


	21. Chapter 21

It was awkward now.

She noted it when they were walking down the hallway. Why, oh, why did she have to kiss him? What was she even thinking really? This was Chris, and he was her friend…best friend, he was her best friend, and you just didn't go around kissing your best friend. Yet, he was also her husband; he was the man she was legally married to. She had signed the marriage license, taken the picture, worn the ring, so kissing him shouldn't feel unnatural or wrong.

Chris was staring at the back of her head, wondering what was going on in there. She had a hold of his hand, the space making her reach back and hold on by the fingertips, but still, she was holding his hand and pulling him. They were going to watch the show from the best seat in the house, and she didn't want to miss any of it. So he followed her and tried not to think about the kiss they had shared earlier. It meant nothing to her, he was sure. After all, she was just excited about being in power and sometimes excitement drives you to do things that are out of your character, and that had to be one of them.

He had loved the taste of her lips though, and it tasted different when it wasn't for the cameras, better even, and he couldn't quite explain why. He had kissed her in front of the camera a number of times, but it lacked that little extra push. What he didn't know was that little extra push was the fact that he had a want for her. There was a want in that kiss, not a need to exemplify the typical married relationship. They weren't putting on a show, it was just them, and that kiss had proven that. If only she had seen more.

"Come on, come on, come on," she told him, pulling him along.

"I'm coming as fast as you're pulling me," he said, falling into the playful banter that had seemed to settle over them since they had been married.

"I don't want to miss the beginning of the show," she said as she walked past one of the tables with a lot of the production things on it. "Hey Callie, can you cue up Chris and my music, please, I want to go out there."

"Sure thing," the woman said as she went to the soundboard and pushed a random button which began Chris's countdown.

Chris could feel the giddiness coming off of her in waves, and it made his own giddiness rise. "Come on, Chris!" she said, standing behind him and forcibly pushing him up the stairs to the curtains.

He heard the pyros go off and he pushed the curtain back, stepping out into the darkened arena, while the lights came on so everyone could see him and Stephanie striding purposefully out there. Stephanie had a microphone in her hand and he wondered briefly when she had gotten that. He didn't recall her grabbing one. She laced her arm through his and regarded the crowd, who were responding with a mixture of boos and cheering, and she chose to focus on the cheering over the booing. There were bound to be boos for her, it was just in the nature of the business.

"Hello," she spoke. "Welcome to Raw, I hope that everyone is going to have fun tonight, and me and my husband," and here she looked adoringly at Chris, "are going to be just like you, fans tonight, and we're going to enjoy the show right here."

They went over to a leather seat that was set up on the top of the ramp and Chris sat down and pulled Stephanie down into his lap as she giggled coyly for the cameras. She kissed Chris's cheek, and was pleased with the tone she had used. She had said it with just the right amount of bitchiness that it made the people backstage fear what she could do, and if they tried to do anything, well, then she would just have to show them who was boss.

Chris watched Stephanie, even when the first participants came out for their match. She was watching eagerly as Edge and Christian went to square off against The Headbangers, a match that dealt with their feud, but nonetheless, Stephanie tried to pay attention to it and not so much pay attention to the fact that she was in Chris's lap. Chris kept trying to watch the match, but found himself distracted by Stephanie. She was just so happy and giddy and he couldn't help but be proud of himself for giving her that.

"You look really pretty, have I told you that tonight?" Chris whispered in her ear.

"I think you've mentioned it, yes," she whispered back.

"I just thought I'd mention it again so you know that you do look incredible tonight."

She blushed a little and ducked her head against his neck, burying it in his long hair. She breathed in his cologne and made note of how nice he smelled. She was embarrassed to be noticed by Chris. It was like when you had a crush on the cutest boy in class and whenever they noticed you, you didn't even know what to do because you were just so happy. It was that way with Chris, every time he noticed her, it struck something inside of her and made her heady with some feeling. Luckily they were married so she could at least sometimes show her affection for him under the guise of their marriage.

Chris was wondering what he had done to deserve this kind of torture. He felt Stephanie press her lips against his neck softly, almost like a flutter against his skin. Did she even know what she did to him? He wondered if she could ever feel the way about him that he felt about her. He just wanted a chance, that was all, just a chance to be with her for real. Sure, they were married, but it was more a business arrangement than anything else.

"You're embarrassed," he chuckled as the match ended and they went to commercial He wondered if anyone was even watching them.

"No," she protested, though the redness of her cheeks was a dead giveaway. "I'm not embarrassed, I just didn't used to hear that so much, I mean, Andrew, yes, but not from many other people."

"Idiots, all of them," he told her. She leaned up to kiss him softly and he moaned quietly against her mouth. He wanted so much to deepen the kiss, tell her that he wanted to keep kissing her, but she wasn't really his wife. She was just his business partner in a sense, someone who was using him just as much as he was using her..

That thought sobered him, and he sat there, trying to remain engaged in the show, but finding it even more difficult now. It was a bitter pill to swallow when you were attracted to someone you knew you could probably never have. He could never have her the way he wanted. She had just wanted to gain the power that she now had. He was nothing more than a pawn to her, a friend, yes, but still, a pawn. He had to reconcile himself with that thought. If he did, maybe it would make this entire thing easier.

"Hey, you okay?" she asked him when he hadn't said anything in a while.

"Yeah," he lied, "yeah, I'm fine." He gave her a crooked smile, hoping that would appease her questioning. It seemed to as she went back to watch a match between Joey Abs and Gangrel, which was kind of boring her right now, but she tried to remain engaged in it.

"Are you sure? Do you want to go backstage?"

"No, you want to stay out here, and I'm cool with that."

She nodded and went back to watching and he did too. If he just didn't think about it, that's all he kept thinking. Hunter's match was coming up and Stephanie got excited for it. She wanted to see him crushed like a bug between Kane and Big Show. And with DX banned from ringside, it was sure to make Hunter very nervous. That alone made it worth watching. Hunter came out from the back, doing his little spiel with the water and everything. He glanced over at the couple sitting on the ramp and glared at them.

"You stupid bitch, you shouldn't even be in charge."

Stephanie grabbed her microphone, "Stop the music, stop the music!" The music ended abruptly as Stephanie stood up. Chris followed suit and stood behind her, folding his arms over his chest and looking intimidating. "What did you just say to me, Hunter?"

"I just said that you shouldn't be in charge, you stupid bitch!" Hunter yelled into the microphone he had brought from backstage.

Stephanie scoffed. "Oh, that's so nice to say to your boss. You know, I could suspend you right now without pay, or I could fire you, I could do so many things to you right now, don't tempt me."

"I thought your dad was bad, but you're so much worse," Hunter told her. "Using your power just to make me miserable, what the hell did I ever do to you?"

"You bugged me," she giggled, glancing back at Chris, who threw her a smile of support.

"This is bullshit!" he told her. "You don't even know what you're doing. And you sit there like you're better than everyone, you ain't better than shit, you bitch!"

Chris had heard enough and went up to Hunter, "You take that back you son of a bitch, you can't talk to my wife like that!"

"I'll talk to her however I want to talk to her, she's just a bitch," Hunter hissed. Chris reared his hand back to hit him, but he felt Stephanie's hand on his arm and he looked at her confusedly.

"Let me hit him, Steph," he told her.

"Now, now, boys, I don't want to see fighting, don't fight, Chris," she whispered the last part so only he would hear. "Not worth it…but Hunter, you question how serious I am, fine, I'm willing to help you change your mind, I will add you to the Fatal-Four Way..."

"What?" Hunter asked in surprise as a smirk slowly passed over his face. "Well, nice to see you're finally thinking straight."

"Wait, wait, wait, I wasn't finished, you can be in the match _if_ you can beat Kane and Big Show right…now," Stephanie said as Kane came out and knocked Hunter down onto the ramp, sending him rolling towards the ring as Big Show joined everyone a moment later. Stephanie smirked as she turned and pushed on Chris's chest lightly to get him back to the seat.

"Do you actually think he'll win?" Chris asked her.

"No way, I'm just giving him a little bit of false hope," Stephanie told him. "Besides, the other guys I put in the match, well, I want to give you the advantage."

"You don't have to do that," he told her.

"I want to, trust me, my part of the bargain was that I get you the title. I can't very well strip Big Show of it if I have no reason to do it," Stephanie explained. "So I have to make sure you get the best chance, and if you should lose, which I don't think you will by the way, then I'll just have to give you another shot."

"You spoil me too much."

"You're my husband, that's what I'm supposed to do," she told him flirtatiously. "And if I'm not doing it right, then you should just tell me."

He raised an eyebrow, "If you're not doing _it_, right?"

She giggled and kissed his cheek, "You know what I mean, and _that's_ not what I meant."

"Oh come on, I could seriously rock your world," he joked with her, well, partly joked with her. If she even gave him the slightest indication that she wanted to be more than friends, that she would want him in bed, then Chris would push her off of him, grab her hand and drag them back to their hotel room where he'd show her a good time all night long. All he needed was the indication. Just one indication…

"I'm not taking you up on that offer," she told him, but she ran her hand down his cheek and he was entranced once again. He couldn't believe how much of his attention that she could command at any one moment.

He really wished he would take her up on that offer though.


	22. Chapter 22

"It's lovely down here."

"I'm glad you like it down here," Chris said. "I know we've been traveling a lot, and you've kind of been living here without actually knowing your way around the place. I just figured that I should show you the things that Tampa has to offer."

"Thank you," Stephanie said softly. "It's nice that you want me to be a little more acquainted with the city."

They walked side-by-side for a few more minutes before Chris made a slightly bold move. He knew that he and Stephanie were getting closer and closer and she was like a best friend to him now. They kissed sometimes, but it was mostly for show. When they were alone together they weren't affectionate, just being friends with each other. But right now, Chris was feeling anything but friendly. He took her hand in his, gripping it gently but firmly, loving the contact with her.

Stephanie smiled to herself as she felt Chris's hand wrap around her own. She took a step a little closer to him so they were shoulder to shoulder, their hands clasped tightly together as they kept walking. There was a slight breeze coming off the water and it blew her hair a little bit. The sun was setting slowly and they both watched it for a moment, mesmerized by the purples and pinks of the new night sky.

"Dinner was great," Stephanie told him. "I had a lot of fun."

"I'm glad," Chris said. "I just want to make you feel like you can consider this your home. I know that when you were going to marry And--"

She stopped the both of them from walking any more steps. Chris stopped talking and just looked at her. She bit her lip and stared at him a moment. Chris thought she was going to tell him not to bring up Andrew because he was the man that she loved. He dreaded that for some reason, even though he knew that Stephanie had loved him. "I don't want to discuss Andrew. He's not around anymore and after the thing with getting you arrested, I don't even want to think about him anymore, he's gone from my life."

Chris smiled wider than at any other point in the evening. "I can definitely do that."

Stephanie gave him a smile that rivaled his own. "Good. I'm glad to be away from Connecticut actually. I've lived in the New England area my entire life, and sometimes, you just need to break away you know."

"Of course I know, my parents living in Winnipeg still," Chris laughed. "I definitely know what you mean about getting away from your family. It's not like you don't love them, it's just you kind of need the space."

"Exactly," Stephanie nodded as they kept walking. "I'm so tired of being under my father and brother's noses where they can watch me. At least here I have some sense of freedom."

"You have as much freedom as you want now…"

She gazed up at him. He looked into her eyes and the colors of the sunset were reflecting in her eyes. He wanted to kiss her but he didn't want to push her or anything. They weren't dating. They were married as a ruse, and he was just lucky that she didn't hate his guts for taking her away from the man that she wanted to marry.

"So, I have something for you," Chris told her.

"You do?" Stephanie asked, breaking her long, intense stare. "What?"

Chris reached into his back pocket and pulled out a white ring box. Stephanie looked at it excitedly as he opened it. Staring back at her was the most beautiful ring she had ever seen in her life. No, wait, it was two rings, now that she looked a little closer. There was an engagement ring with a large diamond sitting atop it, had to be at least 5 carats, and the band was platinum with diamonds embedded in it, the other ring was a wedding band and it matched the band of the engagement ring.

"Chris," she whispered, her voice choking up. "What did you do?"

"You're wearing a crummy wedding ring because of me," Chris said. "You deserve better than the fifty dollar ring that I got in Vegas. You deserve a lot better, and I wanted you to have something that you could be proud of."

"This is amazing," Stephanie said. "But why the engagement ring?"

"Because you deserve one of those too. I know that we had a rocky start and I know that we're probably going to get divorced within the year, but I just didn't want you to have to wear that embarrassment of a ring anymore."

Stephanie had stopped listening after hearing him mention divorce. "Divorce?"

"Yeah, I mean, once this whole plan is through, you won't have any need to be married anymore."

"Oh yeah, you're right," she said, trying to hide her disappointment. She enjoyed being with Chris, even if they weren't a normal married couple. He had made an offer she couldn't' refuse and she had married him just days before she was to marry another man. That wasn't the ideal start to a marriage. She looked at the rings again. "I can't take these rings Chris."

"Why not?" he asked, refusing to feel hurt at her rejection. It was hard though because he had spent so much time looking for these rings, making sure they were perfect, making sure they would fit her finger.

"Like you just said, we'll probably…get divorced, or an annulment and then you'd have spent way too much on me for these rings. Save them for someone you really love."

"Stephanie, I want you to have them," he said, pushing the box a little closer to her. "Please, I bought them for you, and I want you to have them."

"Are you sure?" she asked. "I mean, you really don't have to, I'm fine with the ring I have."

"Steph, I don't want your finger turning green from the cheap ring I got you," Chris said, grabbing her hand and pulling her wedding ring off. He took the engagement ring first and slipped it on her finger and then took the wedding ring and put it on her finger. He smiled and put the old ring in the box, closing it and putting it back in his pocket. "There, now you really look like my wife."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, leaning up to kiss him lightly on the cheek. She let her lips linger on his cheek for an extra second before pulling away and looking down at the two beautiful rings on her finger.

"Do you want to go home now?" he asked her.

"Yeah, that might be a good idea," Stephanie told him. "It's getting colder out here and home sounds nice right about now."

"Ok," he said, grabbing her hand again as they started walking back towards the car. Chris could feel the rings he had just given her pressing into his hand, and she was glad that she had accepted them. He just wanted her to have something nice, regardless of how long they lasted. He knew that he was living on borrowed time with Stephanie and he was making the most of it.

He knew they weren't going to last. Stephanie was too good for him. Now he didn't think this was true of anyone, but Stephanie was different. He had known it from the very first time he had seen her. She was a game for him, and eventually she would win the game because she would leave him, and he would be nothing without her by his side. He was still surprised she had even gone along with his plan, but once she found what she was looking for, she'd leave him for sure.

He was just making the most of the time that he had. Stephanie had changed him for the better. He was a cocky bastard, and even though that was still who he was, he wasn't the same as before. He could take a little humility now and then, and Stephanie was just fun. And she was so beautiful that sometimes it hurt to look at her, and other times he couldn't stop looking at her because above anything else, she was his wife, at least for the time being.

"Oh hey, before we leave, how about a nightcap?" Stephanie asked giddily, pointing to a bar just across the street. It was obviously packed, but Stephanie's eyes were lit up. Chris sometimes forgot that she was just 23 and had only had the "thrill" of drinking for couple of years. She kept pulling him and he let her.

"One drink, Steph."

"Just one, I promise," Stephanie said.

"Ok," he sighed as they walked in. Stephanie stood on her tiptoes and spotted an open table in the corner. She rushed towards it, dragging Chris along with her as she plopped herself down in one of the chairs, pointing to the other for Chris. "I'm going to go get our _one_ drink. What do you want?"

"A martini please," she said with an innocent grin.

"Ok, one martini coming up," Chris told her, unable to resist the look on her face.

Stephanie kind of swayed to the music. She wasn't used to coming into bars. Her work kept her away from anywhere but work. She liked to go to new places though and this one looked fun. There were lots of people milling about, and she smiled as she saw Chris leaning against the bar. So engrossed was she in doing that, she didn't see the guy sitting across from her.

"Crowded tonight," he said, snapping her from her reverie.

"Oh hello," Stephanie said, turning to him with a smile. "Yeah, it's a little crowded."

"I hope you don't mind how forward I'm being in sitting down, there's just nowhere else to, and I needed a break off of my feet."

"It's ok for now," Stephanie answered.

"My girlfriend was supposed to meet me twenty minutes ago, but she's running late and I've been standing around here keeping an eye out for her and I think I've been shoved in the stomach about…five times at least," he told her. "I just needed a break from the standing and waiting."

"Oh, you poor thing," Stephanie said sympathetically. "I guess people just don't care what they hit nowadays."

"You got that right. So are you here with anyone?" he asked curiously.

"My husband," she told him. "He's getting our drinks right now. If he can get a hold of one of the bartenders."

"Yeah, there's another problem in here," he laughed. "And I hope you don't take this as an insult, but you look way too young to be married."

Stephanie blushed. "I'm 23, so I guess to some people that's too young."

"Wow, I could not imagine being married at 23, but hey, different people, different opinions. You have any kids?"

"No, no kids," Stephanie said. "I _know_ that I'm too young for kids. What about you, kids?"

"Actually, yeah, my girlfriend and I have a two year old little boy," the man said. "He's with his grandparents this weekend. This is the first time I think I've been out in months."

"I can imagine," she said jovially. "I'm Stephanie by the way."

He shook her outstretched hand. "Trey."

"Nice to meet you," Stephanie said politely.

"You too, and thanks again Stephanie for letting me sit here."

"Least I can do. It's probably the only night you're going to get for a while with a two year old."

"Yeah, but he's the best kid a dad could hope for."

"Steph, I have our…drinks…" Chris's voice trailed off as he saw the man having a conversation with his wife. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"No Chris, you weren't interrupting anything," Stephanie said, taking the martini out of his hands. "I was just having a nice conversation."

"She's married," Chris said coldly to the other man.

"Yeah, I know," Trey said. "Stephanie told me."

"You're on a first-name basis then huh?" Chris asked, glaring daggers at Stephanie, who was taking a sip of her drink. "That's just nice."

Trey was sensing a little bit of tension. "Hey Stephanie, thanks for the chair, but I think I'll be going now."

"No, Trey, I won't hear of it," Stephanie said, standing up. "Chris and I were just going to have this one drink and then leave. You stay and then you won't get hit in the stomach."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, this way you and your girlfriend will get a much needed night on the town," Stephanie said. "It was really nice meeting you."

"Thanks Stephanie."

Stephanie grabbed Chris's arm and dragged him to the other side of the bar. "What the hell was that?"

"Well, I go to get drinks and I come back and see my wife talking with some guy I don't know. What the hell am I supposed to think?"

"I don't know, but he just wanted to sit down."

"Yeah, and hit on you."

"Did you not hear what I said? He was waiting for his girlfriend, whom he has a son with. He has a kid Chris, and a girlfriend, and his kid is being baby-sat and he was waiting for his girlfriend. That's what was going on."

"Well it didn't look like that from where I was standing."

"Why are you so upset?" Stephanie asked. "It's not like we're really married. You said yourself that we're probably going to be divorced within the year. Even if I was flirting with that guy, it's not like we're going to get together for the long haul. So what does it matter?"

She was hitting him where it hurt, and she knew it. She liked being around Chris, he made her feel good, and knowing that he thought they had no future had stung her, so she felt justified in stinging him back. She knew that Chris was…different from her, they probably wouldn't be compatible past their plans for mutual domination, but she couldn't help it, she wanted more sometimes. Sometimes she would just look at him and wish he saw her as something more than a game.

"You're right," he said, feeling a little crestfallen. "I did say that. So you're free to talk to anyone you like."

"I just don't get why you'd be angry," Stephanie said. She looked down at her drink, which was only half-way done. "I'm suddenly not thirsty anymore. I think I just want to go."

"Okay," Chris answered, taking her drink from her and setting it down on a table.

Stephanie stormed out of the building and walked towards the car. Chris had to run to catch up. He didn't say anything, knowing that he had screwed it all up. He didn't know why he had gotten so angry, but the taste of jealousy filled his mouth. He had _never_ been jealous over a girl before and didn't know how to react to that bitter pill. Stephanie folded her arms as she kept walking, making it back to their car.

She didn't speak to him on the way home and he knew that he had ruined it all. He sighed to himself, biting his lip. He was Chris fucking Jericho, he didn't get jealous and he didn't get angry. He'd just move on and find some other girl. There were plenty of girls out there that would want him. So what? Stephanie didn't want him; he could deal with that easily. Okay, so maybe it wasn't that easy.

They reached the house and Stephanie got out of the car silently. She waited at the door for him and he paused, not getting his keys out immediately. "I'm sorry."

"You know, you told me that I had freedom here, but you're acting exactly like my brother and my father. Trying to control me, trying to control who I talk to; that's not how I want to live my life Chris."

"I know, and that's not why I was doing what I did."

"Then why? Huh?" He just couldn't do it anymore, in the face of their uncertain and certainly separate future, he came clean.

"I was jealous okay!" he shouted.

"What! Why in God's name would you be jealous?" she asked, confused.

Something broke inside of Chris. It was like everything he was holding back suddenly rushed forward and pushed him towards Stephanie. He wrapped his arms around Stephanie tightly pulling her towards him. He closed his eyes, but right before he closed them he saw Stephanie's wide eyes staring at him in shock. He pressed his lips against hers. Her mouth was open in shock and it allowed him to slip his tongue into her mouth, tasting every corner of her mouth.

It was their first real kiss. They had kissed in front of the cameras and for people backstage, but it had been an act. This was their first real kiss outside of work, and it was their best kiss yet. It took Stephanie a few moments, but she was kissing his back eagerly, her arms banding around his neck as she grabbed fistfuls of his hair, pulling him ever closer to her.

Something broke inside of her too.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: This chapter is a little bit on the...I don't know, it's a little bit more graphic than other chapters, but it's not graphic, you know what I mean, it's just like, well, there's a slight, very slight warning on it, just for the kiddie's protection. Anyways, enjoy. :)

* * *

Chris didn't want to break the kiss off, so he didn't. He fumbled around his pocket to pull out the house keys and somehow managed to get the door open. He and Stephanie didn't break their kiss as they stumbled through the door. He threw the keys in the area of the front table, but didn't care where they ended up. He kicked the door closed, still not breaking apart from Stephanie as their kisses became more feverish.

Chris had enough of standing there so he finally broke the kiss and swept the breathless Stephanie off of her feet, cradling her in his arms. It was like something out of the movies. He leaned down and kissed her again, letting her wrap her arms around him before he blindly ascended the stairs and walked down the hall to his bedroom, kicking the slightly ajar door wide open. He deposited Stephanie on the bed, letting her rest against the pillows.

He went to work on her shirt, pulling it off and leaving her in her black lace bra that he stared down at hungrily. He went back to kissing her, not wanting to break contact with her, not right now, not ever. He ran his hands up her bare sides, eliciting a shudder from her. He could feel her fumbling with the buttons on his shirt and he loved where this was going. He went to help her get his shirt off when he felt her hands trembling.

He pulled away, panting slightly and looked down into her eyes. She seemed a little off and he realized this may be going a little too fast for her. "Are you ok?" he asked her gently.

"Yeah," she said, but looked away as she said it, tipping him off to her lie.

"What's wrong?" he asked her quietly, rubbing her hand with his own. "I thought that you wanted this, I mean, you didn't protest when I brought you up here."

"I just…well, I just…I don't…I've never," she stammered, not able to even look him in the eye at this point, her cheeks flushing a deep red. Chris caught on almost immediately. She was a virgin.

"Oh, so you've never…"

"No, I've never," Stephanie said, looking ashamed at that.

Chris got off of her then, rolling over to one side and laying on his side so that he could see her. "Wow."

"I'm sorry, I'm stupid, this is, you probably don't want to…"

"No, hey, hey," he said, tilting her chin towards him. "This isn't something to be ashamed about, or sorry about. I'm just surprised is all. I mean, you're beautiful, what guy wouldn't want you?"

"Well, I mean, in college I was a casual dater, I never went out with a guy long enough to feel comfortable sleeping with him. So I just never slept with them."

"But what about Andrew? You were engaged to him?"

"Well, the thing with Andrew went so fast. I mean, he asked me out and I wanted to get to know him, and then suddenly he was proposing to me, and I said yes, and I wanted to sleep with him, but, by that time, we were going to be married and I figured, I can stick it out this last little while and it'll make our wedding night more special if I just don't sleep with him, and then you came to me with your plan, and it was just too good to refuse, and so I never got the chance, I guess," she confessed with her cheeks becoming redder by the second.

"Oh, so you've never," Chris repeated. Suddenly he was feeling a lot of pressure. It was one thing to finally make love to his wife, but it was an entirely different thing to find out his wife was a virgin and every expectation she had dreamt of was going to fall to him to fulfill. On the other hand, she wouldn't be comparing him to anyone.

"I've never," she replied, closing her eyes. She was suddenly aware that she was only in her bra and even though she wasn't that close to being naked, she felt exposed. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry, please don't be sorry that you haven't had sex," Chris told her. "You're only 23, that's still young."

"I guess I've just been waiting for that one, special guy," Stephanie said embarrassedly, hating that she was revealing so much of herself to him. She just felt so awkward, being this gawky, inexperienced, little girl while Chris was probably a pro at this.

"And I'm him?" Chris asked incredulously.

"If you're not him, then I don't know who is," she confessed, baring so much of herself to him right then. The meaning of the words didn't go by Chris, and he nodded his head slightly.

"Wow, that's a lot of weight on my shoulders."

"So I guess you don't want me anymore then," Stephanie said, sitting up and grabbing her shirt, trying to cover herself up. "I mean, now that you know…everything. You've probably been with tons of women and here I am, pretending like I can be anything that you would want."

Chris scoffed, "_Tons_ of women, what do you think I am Steph?"

"Well, certainly more than my _zero_ guys," she said sarcastically. "You're probably used to, like, I don't know, experienced women."

"_You_ are my wife," Chris said tenderly, pushing her back down so she was lying on the bed again. "Right now, you're the only woman in the world that I want."

"Yeah?" she asked hopefully.

"Yeah…but only if you feel comfortable doing it. I don't want to do anything you're not comfortable with," Chris told her seriously, "We don't have to have sex tonight if you don't feel comfortable with it."

Stephanie looked up at him and pulled him down by the back of his neck. He was so close that his long, blonde hair fell around the both of them like a curtain. She gazed up at him and then pulled him in for a soft kiss, barely touching his lips with her own before she mumbled, "Make love to me Chris."

"Are you sure?" he mumbled back.

"Mmhmm," she said against his mouth, unbuttoning his buttons with more confidence this time. She pushed his shirt off his body and threw it to the floor.

"I don't know what I would've done if you had said no," Chris said against her neck as he gave her feathery soft kisses on her neck, just above her collarbone.

He wanted to take this slow, to let her savor every moment, because he was going to commit every moment to memory. He wanted to make her first time memorable because she was entrusting him with something pretty big, in his estimation. He slowly undressed her, taking his time to kiss every part that he exposed. Stephanie sighed each time he hit a sensitive part of her body.

When she was fully undressed, he took a moment to just look at her and he thanked himself for having the wherewithal to go to her with his stupid plan (which didn't seem so stupid right now), because he could not imagine any other man having what he had at this moment. He licked his lips and kissed her stomach, causing her to laugh a little as she pushed him away and onto his back, giving him the same treatment that he had given her. He just watched her, mesmerized by her innocent beauty.

Stephanie liked what she saw while she was undressing Chris. He had a great body, not too muscular, but just muscular enough to make him delectable. Despite being a virgin, Stephanie wasn't too inexperienced in bedroom activities, as Chris would soon find out. She smirked at him as she leaned down to kiss him, letting the kiss go on before licking her way down to areas that were in desperate need of her attention.

Chris didn't want to end this so quickly and he pulled Stephanie up and flipped her over again. He looked down at her eyes, which were smoldering now, a deep blue-gray that only stared him in the eyes. "Are you sure about this?"

"Yes," she breathed out, panting a little from the intensity of this encounter. "Please."

He was slow and gentle, letting her get accustomed to this foreign feeling. He kissed her repeatedly on the mouth, trying to restrain himself from making this quick despite his growing need for her. He wanted to do this slow and not push her farther than she wanted to take it.

He kissed her the entire time as he slowly made love to her. He wanted her to know that he was there. He was going so gently that Stephanie thought she would die in ecstasy. She grasped onto his arms as the feeling overwhelmed her. It was different from anything she had ever felt before. She didn't know what this feeling was, but she was drowning in it and she never wanted it to end. There had been almost no pain, just this overwhelming pleasure. She just wanted to feel his body over her and in her and everywhere around her. She gasped as she suddenly hit her high and Chris groaned against her mouth as he hit his.

They slowed to a stop and Chris pulled away from her mouth reluctantly. He stared down at her face, a sheen of sweat covering it and he brushed the stray hair away from her face. He finally pulled away from her and rolled away to lay next to her. A moment later and she was cuddling into his side, breathing deeply as she listened to the rapid beat of his heart against her cheek.

"You ok?" he asked, breaking the silence.

"I don't think I can walk," Stephanie said.

"Then my work here is done," Chris joked as Stephanie turned her head towards him.

"Chris?"

"Hmm," he said as he absently brushed some hair away from her face.

"Do you love me?" Stephanie asked.

Chris pulled up the sheets to cover the both of them so they wouldn't get cold with the air conditioning blasting and making the house a little chilly. Stephanie snuggled under the sheet a little, getting settled in his bed. He never wanted to see another woman in his bed, ever again, he decided. Stephanie was perfect where she was, laying there, naked, her hair falling around her face, giving her the most innocent face he'd ever seen.

"Why do you ask that?"

"Because I love you," she said, blushing. "I mean, I know that we're not…I don't know, we didn't date or anything, and this is all part of some silly, little game, but you're different, you're so different. You let me think for myself and do what I want, and I've never had that. So I love you."

"Yeah?" he asked, playing with her hair again.

"Yeah."

"The feeling is mutual, Princess."

"Good," she said, more to herself than him, "Good."

"You're beautiful," Chris said absentmindedly. "The first time I saw you, you intrigued me. I don't know what it was, but I knew there was more to you than met the eye."

"You're the only person who has actually let me be myself and not shoved me into a certain box." Chris laughed a little and she looked at him. "What? Why are you laughing?"

"Because that can be construed as a very dirty thing to say," he joked with her. "I might want to shove you in a different way."

"Chris!" she blushed, her cheeks turning a rosy red. Chris laughed at her indignant face. He ran his hand down her cheek and leaned over to kiss her softly.

"I love you."

She blushed even more and scooted closer to him. He took her hand and laced their fingers together and rested it on his chest. She nuzzled her face against his neck, pressing a soft kiss in the space under his chin. Chris had a hard time trying to keep from grinning all out and subsequently jumping out of bed and doing a little victory dance. Not that Stephanie was a game to him anymore, but he finally felt like he had gained something worth keeping. And surprisingly, it wasn't the World Title belt.

"Am I naïve Chris?" Stephanie asked out of the blue.

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"I'm just wondering."

"You're not naïve Steph. You've just…you haven't experienced everything yet," he told her. "And that gives you an innocent air about you, but you aren't naïve. You've seriously won our game."

"I have?" she asked giddily, pulling away from his chest to look at him in the eye. "I won?"

"You made me fall in love with you and if you were to leave me now, I don't think I could take it, I think you won the game."

She giggled. "Then I guess you won too, well-played Mr. Jericho."

"Well-played to you too Mrs. McMahon-Jericho."

"Well, I'm not as stupid as my family would have me believe. They treat me like I'm ten years old. And I'm not ten."

"That would be pretty creepy if you were ten," Chris told her. "And this would be very wrong."

"Eww," she said and laid back down. "Am I too innocent? You said I was innocent, am I too innocent? Maybe I should become a bigger…presence on the show or something. I don't know, take more control. That way nobody would see me as innocent."

"If that's what you want, I'm not going to stop you."

"Really?" she asked, and her voice was trying to not show the excitement she was feeling. "You really mean that?"

"Why would I stop you? You're the boss."

Stephanie clapped giddily as she grinned from ear to ear. Chris laughed at her excitement. She hugged him tightly and he hugged her back, pulling her on top of him. She leaned down to kiss him before pulling away, straddling him as he took her hands and kissed both of them while looking up at her.

"Actually, you're wrong about one thing," she told him.

"What would that be?"

"I'm not just the boss, _we're_ the boss."

Chris just laughed and pulled her down again.


	24. Chapter 24

Chris woke up the next morning, or should he say afternoon. It was just past noon when he woke up and he yawned, stretching his arms above his head, his eyes still closed. There was a very content smile on his face as he woke up, thinking about what had happened between him and his wife last night. It wasn't even that he had gotten laid, although that was a huge plus, it was the fact that he and Stephanie had finally slept together. He hadn't been pressuring her or anything, but he had to admit that he had wanted to do that with her for a long time, maybe even since the first time he had met her.

He was surprised that she had been a virgin until last night. Never in a million years would he think that someone as beautiful as Stephanie would've still been a virgin. Not that she was old or anything, but Stephanie just exuded a kind of sexiness and to think that no man had had the advantage of her before was just…it was kind of silly. What kind of men had she been with before that they hadn't been important enough for her to want to sleep with? He didn't want to think of it and it was kind of special that he was the only one who would ever get the benefit of Stephanie's body.

He turned on his side and opened his eyes to look at his bride. He just wanted to look at her, maybe forever, but definitely before he had to get out of bed this morning. But when he opened his eyes, she wasn't there. He had to blink a few times to make sure that she wasn't there. She had been there last night, hadn't she? If last night had been a dream then the powers that be were cruel and unjust. Last night just couldn't have been a dream, there was no way that it could've been a dream; it was just too perfect to not be real. Or maybe it was too perfect to have been real; he couldn't think about that now.

He sat up and called out to the empty room, "Steph, you in here?"

There was no answer and he was a little discouraged. He had never been stood up by a woman before. He had done the thing where he left before they woke up, but he had never had it done to him. He hoped that she hadn't left, and that she didn't regret the decision to give him her virginity. He had tried to make it as enjoyable as he could for her, if the whole thing had been real, which he was starting to doubt a little bit. He lifted up his sheet and he was naked, so that was a good sign that last night was real.

He got out of bed and grabbed his boxers from the side of the bed, slipping them on and going in search of his wife. He went to her room first, just to see if she had really left him. Maybe she regretted last night, but she had said that she loved him. But maybe she had just thought that because she had just had sex and she felt compelled to say it. That would make his stomach drop. He got to her room and gently tapped on the door. There was no answer and he pushed the door open a little and saw that she wasn't there, and the bed was made. Stephanie was kind of neat, but since the bed didn't even look slept in, he figured she hadn't exactly left sometime in the night.

He went downstairs and just as he reached the front hallway the door opened and Stephanie almost skipped through the door. Stephanie smiled when she saw him and Chris stood there, watching her. She was positively glowing, her eyes just sparkling in the light streaming in through the door. Chris couldn't help but smile back, he just had to. She closed the door behind her and bounded over to him, giving him a light hug and a kiss to the cheek. She pulled away, but Chris pulled her back and gave her a proper kiss, letting his tongue snake into her mouth playfully.

She pulled away and gave him a sly look, "You want more of me already?"

"I don't think I'll ever get enough," he admitted. "You drive me crazy, you know that."

"I know now," she winked at him.

"So where were you? I woke up and you weren't there and I was starting to think you didn't like last night," he said, pouting.

"Oh, I liked it," she said, her voice lowering as she leaned in close to him. "And I didn't want to wake you up this morning because you were so cute while you were sleeping. I don't think I could ever regret waking up to that face."

"Good," he said impishly as he looked at her. "So really, where were you?"

"I bought you a surprise," she told him.

"Really?" Chris asked excitedly, his eyes widening. "I wanna know what it is, can I know what it is?"

"You're like a little kid," she laughed, "come on, I'll give it to you in the kitchen."

"Okay, lead the way," Chris said, gesturing for her to go into the kitchen. She walked by him, tossing him another smile. He had to smile as he walked behind her and checked her out. He couldn't help it, last night he had seen her naked and it had been…ground-breaking. She set the bag that she had with her in front of her and pulled something out.

"Sit there," she said, pointing to one of the stools. Chris obeyed and sat facing her as she held something behind her back.

"So come on, what did you get me?" Chris asked eagerly, almost bouncing up and down in his chair. "I really want to know."

She looked at his hand. "Where's your wedding ring?"

Chris looked down at his hand. "Oh, I forgot to put it on when I woke up. I'll go up and put it on right now."

"No, that's okay, let me give you your gift first."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," she told him, pushing him back down to his seat. "Okay, close your eyes and hold out your left hand."

"Why? I don't want to close my eyes."

"Chris, please," she asked as she gave him a cute face. He couldn't resist it and so he followed her orders, closing his eyes and holding out his left hand. He felt Stephanie grasp his hand and pull it towards her. He felt her slip something onto his ring finger and she told him, "Okay, open your eyes."

Chris looked down at his left hand and saw that she had slipped a wedding ring on it. Except this wasn't his usual wedding ring. This ring was platinum, like the ring that he had given her, but instead of having diamonds all over it, it had one diamond on the top, embedded into the ring itself. He looked up at her questioningly, but her face was just full of hope and anxiousness. He stared down at the ring again, not sure what to make of it.

"A wedding ring?"

"What? You're allowed to get me a wedding ring, but I'm not allowed to get you one?"

"But I have one," he told her.

"Yeah, and so did I, but I'll have to steal your words for this, you deserve better than a ring that'll turn your finger green."

"Steph, you really didn't have to do this," he told her, still staring down at the ring she had slipped on his finger.

She took her hands and put them on either side of his face, leaning up his head to stare into his eyes. She looked at him and gave him a soft smile, her thumbs rubbing over his cheeks softly. "I love you Chris, and I want to spend forever with you. We didn't get married because we loved each other and those rings symbolize the business arrangement we had, these rings that we're wearing right now, they signify so much more, they signify our future together."

"Wow," Chris answered. "I didn't even think of that."

"Well that's why you have me," she said, leaning forward to kiss him. "Think of it as a thank you too, thank you for saving me from a really bad situation."

"That was totally you," he told her as he pulled her closer into a hug. "I love you too."

"Well, good, I was hoping you would after last night, it's not just any guy I let into my bed, Chris Jericho," she told him, giggling a little bit.

"Or any guy, right?" he joked, then looked down at the ring, "How did you know my ring size?"

"Your wedding ring isn't actually upstairs," she told him, then shrugged, "I took it to make sure it was the right size, I wanted to make sure it was perfect, just like your rings for me."

"You'd think we should have a real ceremony," Chris told her, gathering her up in his arms, "Just to you know, really make this thing official since the last one was for show."

"Maybe someday," she told him, "on our tenth wedding anniversary or something. I'm fine with how it turned out, even though it wasn't ideal, and I didn't get a pretty dress, or a party, or any cake, or presents, and nobody I knew was there, and our witnesses were strangers…"

"Wait," he said, "tenth wedding anniversary? You're already thinking that far ahead? Don't you think that's a little presumptuous?"

"Nope," she said coyly.

"Plus, it sounds like you do want a do-over wedding," he said, poking her in the stomach playfully. She tried to dodge him, but he just held her tighter against him.

"Maybe I do then, just not today, because while I was out getting your ring, I took the things we said to heart last night…the stuff about me being a bigger presence," Stephanie clarified as Chris opened his mouth to say something. "I _do_ want to be something bigger, do some big things and make everything great. That's why I have a meeting scheduled for later today with a new prospect that I'm thinking about bringing into the company."

"Really, a new prospect?" he asked.

"Yeah, I want to snatch them up before WCW even gets the chance to talk to them," she said, her eyes gleaming in anticipation of getting a major coup over their biggest rivals.

"I wouldn't worry about that, WCW is in the shitter right now. If you aren't a big name, or someone who used to be a big name, good luck getting anywhere," he said bitterly and she ran her hands over his cheeks lightly and he smiled as he could feel the coolness of her rings against his face.

"But you're here now, and you're part owner of this company, and you've got so much going for you. Plus, you're going to get the title, I just know it."

"Don't cheat for me," he told her, giving her the evil eye, "I want to win it by myself, now that you've made the match. I just needed the match, the opportunity, the rest I can take care of myself."

"I have no doubt about that," she said confidently, and he appreciated that more than words could say. For so long, his parents were the only ones who believed in him completely. His friends believed in him, sure, but not in the same kind of way. His parents had a blind faith, thinking that he could do anything, and if he just put his mind out there, he _would_ do everything.

Now he had Stephanie, and he felt like it was the same way with her. She had this blind faith in him that he had never gotten from another woman. She thought he could do things that he wasn't even sure that he could, and with just one look from her, he started to believe that maybe he could do everything. That was just one of the many reasons that he had come to love her, and he was so fortunate that he didn't have to hide his feelings for her anymore.

The adoration with which Chris was looking at her was a little bit unnerving to Stephanie. "Chris, stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"I don't know, but it's making me nervous."

"I was just thinking about how happy I am that I don't have to hide my feelings for you anymore," he said, and there was such relief in his voice.

"Me neither," she confessed. "But no time for that right now, I have to think about what to wear to my meeting. I'm having the private plane flying down here, it shouldn't take that long either, and I want to look great."

"You always do."

"You just say that because you love me," she told him as she went to pour him a cup of coffee. He took it from her gratefully, and it was these little things that he was really getting used to. They were a couple now, they were an honest-to-God couple now, and he just couldn't seem to wrap his mind around that.

"So tell me more about this guy?" he asked as he took a sip of the warm black liquid.

"How did you know it was a guy?" she asked him as she leaned on the counter across from him, admiring how nice his new wedding ring looked on her finger. She found herself instinctively going for her own rings and toying with them, loving the way they looked on her hand, the diamond standing out brilliantly against her slightly tanned skin (courtesy of the ever-present Florida sun).

"Well…for one, you want to look good, tip-off right there, second of all, if it were a hot woman, I'd like to think you'd send your charming, gentlemanly husband to do the dirty work," he said, winking at her over his cup of coffee.

"One night and he's already moving on to the next woman," Stephanie sighed in faux dramatic fashion. "Whatever will I do with myself?"

"So who's the guy?" he asked.

"That's for me to know and you to find out," she said mysteriously.

"Wait, you think that I want you going to meet some dude, probably all fancied up in some short skirt and low-cut top?" he asked, following her quickly as she went towards the stairs, throwing him an innocent look over her shoulder as she ascended the stairs. "How short a skirt are we talking here, Steph?"

"How short was the skirt I used on you to get you to fall in love with me?" she joked.

"Stephanie," he said, warning in his voice.

"I'm not going to sell myself to him," she told him as she went into her bedroom and opened her closet. Chris leaned in the doorway as she studied all of the things hanging there, shifting hangers from side to side looking for the perfect outfit.

"I should hope not," he said, then looked around the room before shyly asking, "Um…are you going to…move into my room?"

She turned to him, and smiled a small smile while biting her lip, "I'd really like that."

"Good," he said. "I've got plenty of room in my closet."

"Even better because this one is too small for me," she said as she pulled out an outfit that she liked.

"So you're really not going to tell me anything, are you?"

"No, I want to do this on my own, Chris, you understand, right?" she said, coming over to him, dropping her clothes on the bed as she put her hands on his shoulders. "I know we're a team and we're a great team, but sometimes I'm going to have to do things on my own or everyone is going to think that I'm this doormat that can constantly be used and I don't want that."

"I don't want that either," he sighed. "But that doesn't mean that me at least knowing would be a bad thing."

"Just give me this one, okay? And when I sign him, everything will be good," she said, leaning up to kiss him softly. "It'll be good, Chris, I promise."

"If you say so," he told her. "I really want you to be happy."

"I am happy," she assured him. "Well…I'll be happier when I have more closet space, but I'm so close to being happy it's insane," she said, pushing him out of the room now, "Now get out of here so that I can get dressed and get ready for this meeting."

"But I've seen you naked, doesn't that mean that I can stay in here now?" he said with a laugh.

"If you stay in here while I'm changing I don't think that I'm going to get to this meeting at all," she said suggestively.

"Are you suggesting that _I _would be ungentlemanly and would try to have sex with you right now, or that _you_ wouldn't be able to keep your hands off of me?"

"Both," she said as she closed the door in his face.

Stephanie smoothed out her skirt as she stood outside the restaurant of the hotel where she was having her meeting. She went inside and was told that her dining partner had already arrived. She was led to the table and the man stood up to greet her. She gave him a kind and warm smile, reaching out to shake his hand.

"Hi, I'm Stephanie McMahon-Jericho, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"The name's Kurt…and the pleasure is all mine."


	25. Chapter 25

"We'd just love it if you could join us."

"It sounds like you really want me," Kurt told her.

"We do, I'm sure of it. We could introduce you as soon as you sign the contract, or if you want to wait a little while, we can discuss the details further, I'm sure. The most important thing would be to get you under contract. We'll of course speak with your agent and the legal team for the company to come up with a fair deal for you."

"I like the sound of this. When I visited WCW, they weren't so accommodating," he told her, giving her a smile that she wasn't sure she was quite comfortable with. She looked down and he blatantly checked her out while she wasn't looking.

Stephanie looked down because there was a bitterness in her heart over WCW. Not because of anything they did, per se, but Chris had told her of the conditions there, of how he was held down time and time again, told he wasn't good enough, not given matches that he so greatly deserved while he was there. While a part of her loved that he had left because he was with her now, another part hated that company for not realizing the kind of talent that her husband had.

She smiled at that word, husband, he was her husband now, and it was in the real sense. She thought back to last night, and smiled even wider. She looked back up at Kurt, and he thought the smile was because he was going to sign with her company, but it wasn't, no, that was a smile reserved for Chris. "Well, we're definitely better than WCW, and we'll definitely make sure that you are at the top."

"I would like to be a main-eventer."

"With your talent and skill, I don't see anything less, of course, at first, we'll just try to get you used to everything that goes along with the life, but overall, you'll be at the top soon enough," she reassured him.

"I'd really like to come then," he told her.

"Great," she said, extending her hand to him. He shook it firmly. "I'm really excited to have you on the show."

"I'm really excited to be there," he returned.

"I'll let you enjoy the rest of your time in Tampa, Kurt Angle," Stephanie told him. "I have your phone number, so expect a call soon. And you have my number, right?"

"Yeah, right here," he said, waving a slip of paper, wondering when he was going to use that number next. He smirked at the thought.

"Good, if you need anything, or if you need any questions answered, then just give me a ring."

She shook his hand again and said her goodbyes before leaving. He watched her walk away with an almost lecherous smirk on his face. She was beautiful, and he couldn't believe that she was going to be his boss. She was totally gorgeous and the outfit she was wearing seemed to hug every single one of her curves, and he had to appreciate every new one he found. Oh yeah, he was going to enjoy working underneath Stephanie McMahon, and maybe he would be working _her _over someday soon.

Stephanie gave a giddy, little giggle as she sat in her car. This was her first real coup, and she was excited about it. Wait until her father and brother saw that she signed someone who had such a bright future in the business. Kurt Angle had been looked at by other companies, but she had been the one to sign him. They were going to have a coronary when they saw that she was doing a better job than they ever could.

She got back home and walked in through the living room to see Chris lounging on the couch watching television. He gave her a short wave and a smile as she went into the kitchen to write down her appointments on the little calendar she had insisted they put on the door so she wouldn't forget anything. When she was through with that, she went upstairs to her room to change, throwing her clothes on the bed. When she went to open her closet though, it was empty.

Her eyebrows knitted as she went to her drawers and saw they were empty too. It was only then did she notice that her personal effects were gone from the room. She gave a small smile as she left the room, half-naked, and walked down the hallway to Chris's…no, their bedroom and pushed open the door and saw her things lying around. She smirked as she walked into his closet and saw her clothes hanging there and sitting on the shelves across one wall. She didn't want to tear up or anything, but it was possibly the sweetest gesture anyone had ever done for her.

She grabbed a t-shirt and some house shorts and slipped them on before going downstairs. Chris was still watching television so she sat down next to him. He kept sneaking glances at her, trying to seem oblivious, but he was watching her intently with every glance, the smile trying hard to come out as she snuggled up to his side.

Finally she broke the comfortable silence, "You moved all my stuff."

"Well, I didn't want you for one more second thinking that your room wasn't my room too," he told her as they kept their eyes trained on the movie playing on the screen.

"Oh, so you thought I'd change my mind did you?" she asked playfully, poking him in the side a little bit.

"It crossed my mind," he admitted and she was surprised to hear it. But she was also glad that he was being honest with her. That's what any good relationship had, honesty, and she wanted that with Chris.

"Why?" she asked innocently enough.

He shrugged, "I don't really know, I mean, we didn't exactly…date, for lack of a better word, you know, we kind of just jumped into this, so who's to say that you can't just jump right back out?"

She frowned at that, then pursed her lips, "No, we didn't date, and yes, we just jumped into it, but I love you _now_, and that has to count for something, right? You don't just love someone and sleep with them for nothing, at least I don't. Do you?"

"Are you trying to con me into saying something I don't want to say?"

"Accusing _me_ of something like that, I'm insulted, Chris!" she said in mock indignation.

"No, I wouldn't do that, okay, happy?"

"Hmm…walk-in closet, gorgeous husband, huge rock on my finger, company that's all mine, what's not to be happy about?"

"Okay, I get it…so…"

"It went well," she said, and they were both surprised at the level of understanding that they had acquired in their time together. It was like they knew what the other was thinking and neither one of them had had that before, so it was a surprise to both of them.

"Who's the guy?"

"Kurt Angle, heard of him?"

"Um," he thought for a moment, "sounds familiar."

"He's an Olympic gold medalist, it's a really great pick-up for us. He's going to sign, he didn't even need more time, or to come visit or anything, it was great! I think he'll make a big splash for us, in fact, if you're not careful, Chris, he could become more popular than you are."

"What! I don't think so, do you know how popular I am?" he asked cockily.

"Only because of me," she joked.

"I don't think so," he told her. "_You're_ popular because of _me_."

"We'll see, Jericho, we'll see…"

--

It was the first time they walked into any arena as a couple. Chris wanted to believe that everyone saw it was different between them, but that was probably just his imagination. They had acted like a couple before, but they were an actual couple now, it was just nobody knew about it. Still, he wrapped his arm around her waist a little tighter and kissed her temple. She turned and rolled her eyes at him, and he gave her a look that said everything. He was going to whisper in her ear before she started to speak.

"Oh wow, Kurt?"

Kurt turned around and saw her, "Hey, I figured I could come by and check out what I'm getting myself into."

Stephanie pulled away from Chris and he frowned at the loss of her body heat, "I'm glad you came, you should see where you're going to work."

"I figured as much, maybe I can strike up a rapport with some of the guys around here," he said, gesturing around him.

Stephanie slapped her forehead just then, "I'm so stupid," she said, more to herself than to him as she turned sideways to grab Chris's hand and pull him forward, "I can't believe I forgot to introduce you, Kurt, this is my husband, Chris Jericho, Chris, this is Kurt, I told you about him."

"Yeah, you told me about him last night when we were getting ready for bed," he said, trying to be subtle, but he wasn't. He gave Kurt the once-over, sucking at his teeth a little before smiling at Stephanie.

"Yeah…that's right," she said, studying him. "But hopefully you guys will get along."

"Yeah, maybe," Chris said, looking at Kurt, who wasn't even looking at him. His eyes were on Stephanie alone, who was gazing at Chris with an excited smile on her face. Chris couldn't help but return it, though tentatively.

"That'd be great," Stephanie said. "But I have to steal Chris for now, but feel free to look around, meet people, just don't go out there since you're not official yet."

He chuckled, "I was hoping I could talk to you more about how you want to introduce me, that's one of the main reasons why I came, I was hoping that we could talk, you know, about what's going to happen."

"Okay," she nodded, and Chris looked down. It wasn't his place to interrupt her when she was doing business. "We'll find the time, until then."

"Yeah, until then."

Stephanie started walking again, not even glancing back at Kurt as she squeezed Chris's hand, "Don't even tell me you were jealous."

"He was checking you out!" Chris protested. "Did you see him? He was checking you out like I didn't exist."

"Bullshit," she told him, and he raised an eyebrow. "He's a future employee, he's not boyfriend-material, at least not to me. I'm a taken woman now, don't worry about him. He's going to be big though, I can feel it, from what I've seen, he's got a lot of raw potential and talent."

"That's good."

She stopped and pushed him lightly against the wall. "Chris, please, give me this? You know that I want to be a bigger presence, that I want to dip my feet into this thing and see what I can do. I'm going to be talking to guys, guys you don't like some of the time, but that's my job now."

"No, I know, I completely understand," he told her, nodding. Then he leaned his forehead against hers, "I'm sorry, I'm just getting used to this relationship thing, and showing you how I feel. I don't have to hide it."

"Well, I'm getting used to it too, so we'll learn together," she told him, leaning in and pressing her lips to his. "I love you."

"I love you too," he sighed contentedly.

"Yeah, I knew I was good," she said cockily. "And I'm totally more popular than you are."

"Lies!"

"No way!" she said.

Edge walked up to them and cleared his throat, Chris and Stephanie turned to him questioningly. "Sorry to interrupt the grossosity going on here, but Chris, we're in a six-man match with you tonight and the bro and I wanted to strategize, because strategizing reeks of awesomeness."

"You good by yourself?" he asked.

"I'm always good," she winked. He kissed her again, holding her gently by the neck. Edge had to clear his throat again and Chris chuckled lightly before leaving Stephanie to go talk with Edge and Christian.

She wasn't alone for five seconds when someone walked past her, brushing her shoulder, hard, she turned to speak to the person, "Watch where you're going!"

"Oh, sorry," Hunter said sarcastically, "oh, it's you, well, look what the cat dragged in."

"Oh, funny," she told him. "Are you still sore about that match I put you in? Don't hold a grudge, Hunter, it was all in good fun, right?"

"Yeah, a handicap match is great fun, you know, you're just like…no, wait, you're _worse_ than your family, you're a huge bitch, a total slut, just jumping from Test to Chris like that, was Chris better in bed? We know you like to lie on your back to decide who gets to be in a title match."

"Why do you want to know how Chris is in bed, Hunter…oh man, do you have a crush on my husband?" she giggled. "Well, this is awkward, but he's taken…and straight, sorry."

Hunter scowled and cursed under his breath, "You're still a slut."

"Keep believing that," she tossed at him, "I'm sure it'll keep you warm at night when you're all alone in bed."

"You're never alone, are you, Stephanie?"

"No, I'm usually with my husband," she said, then laughed at the look on his face. "Yeah, I thought so, you don't have anything."

Stephanie thought he was so pathetic. He was probably just jealous of Chris, since Chris was getting a title shot. Hunter was a very jealous man, but it was never over women or something like that, no, it was always over the belt. She felt a little bit bad that his whole life was that title. She smiled as she thought about how her life had shifted and how she was probably number one on a certain blond's list of priorities. But back to the ass at hand.

"I'm not going to let you have your way, Stephanie," Hunter called after her.

"Yeah, try and stop me, Hunter, just try and stop me."


	26. Chapter 26

"You are going to be fantastic."

"Oh, you just know this?"

"Yes, I know this."

"You do know that I'm in a Fatal Four-Way Match, right? Those things are not exactly what I would call an easy win."

"So? I still believe in you," Stephanie told him as she held onto the collar of his sparkly shirt. His hands came over her and he rubbed the back of them with his thumbs. "I think that you are going to blow them all away and you are going to win the title."

"I am in a match with three other guys who have just as much of a chance."

"They have no chance," she told him, shaking her head.

"Steph, come on," she told him. "I mean, Big Show _is _in the match. That guy is like, three of me."

"But you're quicker, all you need to get is one pin, that's it," she told him. "That's it, Chris, and I believe that you can do that."

"But I'm going to have three guys gunning after me, you know this, right? I have a huge target on my back because I'm married to you," he said, brushing her hair back. "Not that I'd trade you for the belt or anything."

"That's reassuring," she laughed. "But Big Show is slow, and the other two guys I've put in there, well…Rikishi is slow as well, and you might as well count Edge out of the entire equation since that was a complete pity thing, in that I pity he has to be in the ring with you."

"So you think that I can use my speed and agility to win this thing."

"Yes, and the fact that Big Show and Rikishi are obviously going to be at each other's throats because they hate each other, I think you can take out Edge easily, so then you let them fight it out and then you get in there for the pin and ta-da, you're the new WWF champion."

"You make it all seem so easy."

"Because it is."

"I'd like to see _you_ get in the ring," he teased.

"Well, maybe that can be arranged, did you ever think of that?" she asked, raising her eyebrow. "Maybe I'll become the Women's Champion and then you and I can both be champions, what do you think about that?"

"And tell me, just how are _you_ going to get the Women's Title, last I checked, you couldn't wrestle," he told her, but it was said in a very teasing way. He didn't want her to think that she was incapable of something because he truly believed that Stephanie was capable of anything that she wanted to do.

"That's what I have you for," she told him with a smirk as she heard Rikishi's music going off. "Oh, Chris, you're up right after Edge, are you ready? Did you need anything before we go out?"

Chris jumped up and down in place a little bit, shifting his head from side to side, "No, I just need to get in the zone."

She stayed quiet, letting him focus, but stayed near him for the support that he might need. She was really getting into a groove with Chris, and she had to admit that she liked it. She knew that she was going to get married to Andrew before, but when she pictured their married life, for some reason, she had never felt like she would be this comfortable in her marriage. That was the overlying theme that seemed to take shape when she was with Chris. She was incredibly comfortable being around him.

She thought back to how they spent their downtime at home and how they felt like an honest-to-goodness married couple. They did things together, they had their little inside jokes, he cooked for her, she did his laundry, it was just this comfortableness that they had almost instinctively fallen into, and she loved it. She loved it and she loved him, and it was getting harder and harder each day to see why she would want to marry Andrew in the first place.

She felt Chris's hand slip into hers and that broke her from her reverie. She loved his touch. It was soft, always so soft and almost careful, and she never would've expected that. When you looked at Chris, he always had a kind of rough look about him, but he was really just…downright sweet. It was a side of him he should show more often, but she understood why he couldn't in the business they were in.

"You ready?" he asked.

She nodded, "Yeah, but I'm not the one in the ring."

"I know, but still…hey, before we go out there, can I ask something of you?"

"Of course, what is it?"

"Can you not help me?" he asked. "I know that you're my wife, and I love you for that, and I know that you set up this match in the first place, but I want to win this one on my own."

"That's not a problem," she told him. "I don't think I even have to interfere."

"Good, it's just…well, in WCW, I never even sniffed the world title, let alone get to compete for it. Did you know that I even suggested letting myself get squashed by Goldberg and they turned me down. If I'm going to win the WWF Championship, I want to do it of my own merit."

"That's admirable."

"Are you teasing me?"

"No," she giggled, "I'm not, I really think that's endearing, really! Honest to God."

Chris and Stephanie both heard his countdown at the same time. He widened his eyes a little and then turned towards the gorilla and then the ramp to the stage. Chris let Stephanie go up first and she pulled him along gently until they were right behind the stage. They waited for the pyros to go off before Chris appeared at the top of the ramp in his usual position. Stephanie came right beside him and when he was done doing his routine, she joined him at the side.

The fans were a mixed bag of cheers and boos and Stephanie was just grateful that they didn't all hate her. She knew there were going to be some people who didn't like this whole changing of the guard thing, but she didn't care. If they didn't like the way that she ran things, they would soon enough when she blew her father out of the water with her plans and her unending potential.

They reached the bottom where Rikishi and Edge were staring him down, each with clear intent in their eyes. Stephanie leaned up to kiss Chris briefly for luck before she made her way around the ring towards the announcer's table, content to spend her match time over there where it was relatively safe.

The match started as soon as Big Show was down there, Edge rushing the ring and trying to knock him over, but to no avail. Chris pulled Edge away from Big Show and started to work on him, chopping him until he was in the corner. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Big Show and Rikishi going at it, and he was happy about that. Those two big lugs could wear the other out and he could go in for the kill. He swung Edge so he went straight towards the ring post, but he reversed Chris and he went back first into the aforementioned ring post, crying out in pain as he did so.

He fell over and could feel Edge pulling him up, chopping him this time. Chris pushed him off and climbed up the ropes and launched a missile dropkick right into Edge's chest. He fell to the ground and could hear Stephanie cheering him on. He looked towards the outside of the ring where Big Show and Rikishi were tussling and he saw an opportunity, running towards the ropes and flipping off of them to get the Lionsault.

He landed it perfectly, hearing Edge groan as he hit. He crawled over to pin him, and heard two before he felt himself getting pulled off of Edge. He looked up and was caught by Big Show's large hand, then was tossed towards the other side of the ring. Chris fell and lay there for a moment to regroup himself before entering the fray again.

"Come on, Chris!" Stephanie yelled from her vantage point. She chanced it and went over to the side of the ring that he was on. "Come on, baby, you got this."

Her words spurred him on and he got up and charged Rikishi, laying some punches on him to get him dazed before he did and enziguri on him. It was out of the corner of his eye that he saw movement to where Stephanie was. Big Show was stalking her around the ring and she looked frightened. Rikishi instantly forgotten about, Chris ran over and slid under the bottom rope and got between Big Show and Stephanie, much to Big Show's chagrin. Chris let Big Show come closer and then made them turn slowly so Big Show's back was to the ring. He saw Edge behind him and in that moment, they were allies. Edge ran and did a baseball slide right into Big Show, which pitched him forward.

Chris got himself and Stephanie out of the way just in time. He turned to her, placing his hand on her shoulder, "It's too dangerous out here for you, Steph, go backstage."

"Chris, no, I want to stay with you," she told him.

He looked right into her eyes and spoke, "Steph, I know you want to be out here with me, and I really do want you out here, but I don't want you to get hurt again like you did when I faced Test. Please, Steph, I worry about your safety."

"Okay," she said, recognizing the sincerity in his voice, and if he was distracted by her then he wasn't going to give his best effort. She leaned forward and gave him a peck on the lips. "For luck."

"Thanks, baby," he told her with a smile before she circumvented the ring and walked up the ramp and backstage.

Just because he didn't want her out there didn't mean that she wasn't going to watch the match. She settled herself in front of a monitor, biting her lip as she saw Chris get back into the ring, all four men going at it with no rhyme or reason. Chris was still in good shape though, and he didn't seem tired even though they had been wrestling for at least twelve minutes straight by now, if not more.

"Stephanie, hey!"

Stephanie turned slightly and saw Kurt next to her. He had made his debut earlier that evening against Triple H and had won his first contest here so his ego was especially large right that moment. She gave him a small smile before turning back to the monitor. "Hello, Kurt."

"What're you doing?" he asked, like he didn't know and she rolled her eyes a little. Wasn't it obvious what she was doing?

"I'm watching Chris's match," she explained, not tearing her eyes away from her husband. "I want him to win."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Kurt said, trying to act nonchalant.

"I know that, I want him to win," she said with such determination that it surprised him.

"Did you see my match earlier?"

"Oh uh…yeah, sure, of course," she said, but she had to rack her brain to actually recall his match. That might've been when Chris was trying to make out with her. She smirked at the thought. "You were good."

"Good? I was great, Stephanie, it felt great, I think I did a good job, the fans loved me," he said cockily.

"That's nice, Kurt," she told him, keeping her eyes firmly on how Chris was doing. She winced as Rikishi smashed his head into an exposed turnbuckle and she hoped that he wouldn't start bleeding because then she might not be able to help herself and she'd run out there to help him in any way possible, promise or no promise.

"I think that I'm really going to get over with the fans, I think that they'll embrace me and love me. I'm an Olympic gold medalist, I'm sure all the kids in the audience look up to me as some kind of…hero," he said, puffing his chest out proudly.

"Of course," she said, not even listening at this point, but Kurt was to into himself to even care.

"So, Stephanie, what are you doing after the show?"

"What?" she asked, turning her attention to Kurt finally, "What do you mean?"

"After the show, are you going to have dinner or something, because I thought that _we _could have dinner and maybe discuss places that you want me to go, and maybe we can learn a little bit more about each other."

"Um…yeah, that sounds…fun or whatever, but I'm probably going to be celebrating with Chris."

"He hasn't won," Kurt said.

"But I believe in him."

"Well, if he doesn't, then maybe you'll take me up."

"He will," she said resolutely, "I know he will."

"But if he doesn't…"

"Kurt, I appreciate the fact that you want to take me out," she said, "but I'm going to have to take a rain-check, I'm sorry."

"Oh yeah, no problem," he said, smiling on the outside, but not so much on the inside.

"Yeah, sorry again," Stephanie said, and if she hadn't been so focused on Chris and his match, she might've seen what Kurt was trying to do, but as it was, she was still oblivious to what he really wanted from her.

She ignored Kurt after that and went back to the match. And she was just in time too, because when she turned, she saw that Big Show and Edge were laid out on the sides of the ring, down for the count. She wondered how that had happened. Chris looked like he was going to get the stinkface, which would gross her out for the rest of the evening, but he had been playing possum and he ducked out of the way, dropkicking Rikishi into the corner before getting in some more moves on him. He went for the Walls of Jericho, putting them in tight, and since the other two men were incapacitated, Rikishi was forced to tap.

Stephanie actually screamed, and she ran out there as the referee handed Chris the belt. She climbed into the ring and Chris turned just as she was rushing towards him and he caught her in his embrace. She didn't care that he was sweaty or gross, she just hugged him tightly as he buried his face into her neck.

"You did it! You did it!"

Stephanie's part of the initial agreement had been fulfilled, Chris was the WWF Champion. But as he stood there, having Steph hold up his hand in victory, he wasn't even thinking about the belt. It didn't matter. What was it anyways? A piece of leather and some gold; big deal. He had so much more than that now. It was just a prize, something he had won and would keep for a while and then probably lose.

It was Stephanie that he really wanted to hold onto.

That might be a much harder task.


	27. Chapter 27

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, sorry for the lack of updates, school is hard, man. Anyways, leave a review and enjoy. :)

* * *

Chris winced as went backstage. He had just had a match against The Rock, non-title, and the other man had been kind of brutal on him, stiffing him every chance that he got. He understood that just came along with the territory but damn if it didn't leave him sore pretty much every morning. He didn't like Stephanie to see him in so much pain so he tried to hide it for the most part. He winced again before pulling back the curtain and looking around for her, putting on his bravest face.

She wasn't in the immediate area and she sighed, wincing again as he tried to walk gingerly though his shoulder was throbbing. "Wow, dude, you look down for the count."

Chris looked up at Christian and nodded to him, "I _feel_ it."

"I bet," his blond friend said. "Rock sure took it out of you."

"Well, you know how it goes."

"No, I don't know how it goes, I've never even had a title match," Christian told him. "So no, I don't know how it goes."

"You're the tag champs though, and the Hardys are always bugging the shit out of you, so you at least know somewhat what it's like to have guys gunning after you," Chris said, holding his ribs now. Did those things hurt just a few minutes ago? It didn't seem like it, but they were sore now. He winced again.

"You're really in a lot of pain, aren't you?" Christian asked.

Little did Chris know that Stephanie was just about to turn around the corner, she did actually start to turn, saw Chris, heard Christian's question and decided not to make her presence known just yet. She had seen the match, and she had seen Chris be triumphant in the match and she wanted to come congratulate him before she got back on the phone with the lawyers who were drawing up contracts for the Royal Rumble match coming up in a couple of weeks. Every participant needed one, plus she'd have to contact finances to see about the bonuses for the employees working the show.

"Yeah," Chris said.

"Maybe you should go see the trainer," Christian suggested.

"Nah, it's nothing that a good night's sleep won't alleviate somewhat."

"You _know_ you're just going to wake up more sore than you are now."

"I'm hoping that positive thinking will turn into positive action," Chris said, giving a sorry chuckle as the soreness crept up into him. "Don't tell Stephanie about this, okay, I don't want her to worry about me."

Stephanie frowned a little bit. She was supposed to worry about Chris because if she didn't, who would? Sure, his parents would worry about him, but they were all the way in Canada. She didn't like the idea of Chris keeping anything from her. If she knew one thing about any relationship, it was that you should tell the truth, isn't that what everyone said made a good relationship? She wanted Chris to be honest with her, even if it was to spare her anything.

"I won't," Christian told him.

"I just don't want her to know that guys are gunning for me not only because I'm champion, but because I'm her husband," Chris said. "They just see me and they see authority and well, you know, stick it to the man and all that. I dread the day I have to face Trips in a singles match, I think he'll try to kill me."

"You should go see the trainer at least, before Stephanie shows up, just to make sure."

"Thanks for the concern, I'll be fine, I've been doing this for a long time."

Chris turned around and started walking back to his locker room/Stephanie's office. He turned the corner and saw Stephanie, who had taken a few steps back and was pretending like she was just going to see him. His eyes lit up at the sight of her. That was almost enough to ease most of the pain away. She smiled at him, though tentatively, but he took no notice of this as he leaned down to kiss her.

"Hey, did you see my match?" Chris asked anxiously.

"Yeah, you won," she said, trying to sound excited. "How about we cut out of here early?"

"You already finished your calls?"

"No, but it's getting late anyways, I shouldn't really be bothering people when they're at home, or you know…staying late at work is never fun. I think I'll just let the guys go home and talk to them in the morning when we're all fresh."

"It's cool, Steph, I have to take a shower anyways, so you can make your calls, it's important to you to make these, and I can wait, it's not a big deal," Chris told her, wrapping his arm around her waist. She reciprocated the action, soothingly rubbing his lower back. Chris thought it was an unconscious act, but it was a deliberate one to Stephanie, hoping that she was easing his muscles.

"No, we can cut out of here, you can just shower…or take a bath, wouldn't a nice bath be good?" Stephanie asked, trying to make it sound enticing.

"A bath? I don't take baths because I'm not five," Chris said.

"But I mean, wouldn't that be nice?" she said, thinking that a bath would help soothe his muscles. "I think it would be nice."

"I'm fine with a shower here."

She leaned up and kissed his jaw, "Well, how about we take one together then?"

"Together?" he asked, raising his eyebrow up.

"Uh huh."

"And you don't think that's a little too romantic comedy for you? I mean, you see those kinds of scenes all the time, do you want to be one of those cheesy couples?" he teased. Stephanie giggled. "I'm guessing you do."

"We'd be naked," she said in a sing-song voice.

"Well, you had me at naked," he said, wrapping his arm tighter around her. "All you had to do was tell me that you were going to be naked, you're completely irresistible when you're naked…hell, you're irresistible when you're clothed too, you know, I'll take you pretty much any way that I can get you."

"Good, let's just go get our things and cut out of here."

Chris and Stephanie went and gathered up their belongings, leaving the last hour of the show to the competent staff they had employed. They went back to their hotel suite and slipped inside quietly. As soon as they were inside, Chris was kissing Stephanie fervently. She tried to pull away, but Chris had other intentions. She laughed and tried to pull away from him, but he had her face in his firm grasp.

"Chris, bathroom," she whispered between his kisses.

"Let's just get to the bed, that's better," he said, leading her over. He gently pushed her on the bed and she was ready to agree and just let him do his thing. Unfortunately, she caught the slightest grimace as he bent down to get on the bed with her. He eventually got there and she placed both her hands on his chest. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," she assured him.

"Are you sure? Is this too fast for you?" he asked, still worried about her virtue. They had been sleeping together for over a month, but he still didn't want to rush her if she didn't want to do something.

"No, this is fine, _really_ fine," she told him, leaning up to kiss him. "You just…" She tried to think of something quickly, then something dawned on her, "you stink."

"I stink?"

"As in you smell," she said, "you haven't bathed after your match so you know, you've kind of got that sweaty, gross thing going on, and well, sweaty and gross doesn't really equal sexy."

He laughed, "I'm sorry, I totally forgot."

"It's fine, I'm not like, totally disgusted," she told him, running her thumb under his bottom lip, "just thinking that…you could…bathe."

"Okay, for you, anything, so do I get to take you up on that offer?" he asked, popping his eyebrows a little bit in suggestion.

"Why don't you get inside and I'll join you in a second, make sure to add bubbles," she joked. "That makes it even more cheesy romantic comedy."

"Okay," he said, getting off the bed and she bit her lip as she saw that he was still sore. She sighed as he disappeared into the bathroom, glad that she was so quick-thinking. She just wanted him to rest for a while, let his body rest. She also felt a little bit guilty that guys were targeting him because they were married.

She got up and walked into the bathroom where Chris had just eased himself into the tub and she laughed as she saw that he had indeed put bubbles in it. Since they had one of the bigger suites, the tub was definitely large enough for two people, maybe even five people. She sat down on the marble that was behind the tub.

"Hey, you aren't joining me?" Chris pouted.

"I'm good over here," she said, taking his hair into her hands and playing around with it. "You just relax."

"I'm plenty relaxed," Chris said, "Come on, I feel really girly in here with bubbles and taking a bath."

"No, you just take one," she said, starting to massage his shoulders a little. Chris leaned back involuntarily and closed his eyes, wondering how her hands could feel like such magic. She was happy to see him actually relaxing.

"Steph, just come inside," he insisted.

"No," she replied.

"Why not?"

"Just because."

Chris reached up to stop her massaging, pulling her down by her arm until she was looking at him face-to-face, "Steph, what the hell is up with you tonight? You've been acting weird, what's wrong?"

She decided to tell the truth, "I heard what you said to Christian, about guys stiffing you in the ring because of me."

"Oh, Steph," he sighed. "Get in here."

"No…"

"I'm going to pull you in, clothes and all if you don't get in here," he told her, that damning smirk on his face. She couldn't resist it and she pursed her lips a little bit, pushing his soapy hand off her arm and standing up. She got undressed quickly and quietly, slipping into the tub in front of Chris. She leaned back against his chest as she felt his arms snake around her ribcage. He leaned down and kissed her temple as she clipped her hair back. "_Now_ we've really got the cheese going."

She giggled quietly. "Yeah, I guess we do."

"So you heard what I said?"

"Chris, I don't want you to get hurt because of me."

"I'm not, Steph, it's nothing I can't take…and that's why you wanted me in the bath, because you thought that it would help me recover."

"Yes," she said, turning a little so she could see his face. "I don't want you to get hurt, and then you didn't even tell me, aren't we supposed to tell each other things? We're married, Chris, we're beyond dating or engaged, and I know we had neither of those, but we've been working on this marriage thing and it's been going _so _great, Chris, and I love you and I love being with you, and…don't keep things like that from me, you think that I like to think that you've been pretending to be not hurt when you have been? I worry about you, you know."

"I know," he said, wrapping her up tighter. He loved the feel of her body pressing back against his. She was just so soft and smooth and he loved her so goddamn much. "I'm sorry, I'll tell you if I'm hurting. I really don't like baths though, to let you know."

"I'm sorry, do you want to get out?" she asked.

"I'm comfortable now," he said, leaning back against the neck rests that were designed into the tub. Stephanie leaned back against him as they sat quietly, just resting against each other. It was comfortable, this silence, and they both enjoyed it, just being able to be quiet once in a while. It's a nice relationship when you don't need words to communicate. Stephanie could feel Chris's right hand caressing her skin underwater, a strange, delightful sensation. His other hand was behind his head and she reached her hand up to grab his, interlacing their fingers together.

"I could schedule you in easier matches," she said, breaking the silence.

"No thanks," he told her and somehow she could tell that his eyes were still closed.

"Are you--"

"I'm sure, I'm not asking for preferential treatment, Steph, I can handle myself out there, I did it for nine years before we were ever together, I can do it now," he reminded her. "I just want to be with you for you, not for what you can give me."

"Okay," she said, going back to the comfortable silence. It was broken again moments later when there was a knocking on the door.

"Who the hell is that?" Chris asked.

"Room service?"

"Did you order room service?"

"No, but you never know who shows up with what," she told him. The knocking continued.

"Ignore it," he said, tightening his hold on her.

"Okay," she agreed, making no move to get up; she was quite comfortable where she was, thank you very much. But the knocker didn't agree as it continued and continued. "Okay, I'm getting it."

"Damn it," he said, letting her get out of the tub. She grabbed one of the complimentary robes that was hanging from a hook on the door and put it on, tying it tightly around her waist. She left Chris in the bathroom as she went to the door. She looked through the peephole and her eyes narrowed as she opened the door a little bit.

"Kurt?" she asked, looking at him through the slat in the door.

"Hey, Steph, was I bothering you?"

"Uh, you were--"

"Anyways, I was wondering if we could have breakfast tomorrow, I wanted to discuss where I'm going, you know in which direction I'm heading going into the rest of this year."

"You couldn't have called me?" Stephanie asked. "I mean, I give my number to the wrestlers so they can contact me."

"Well, I didn't know if you were in your room and I didn't want to leave a message so I took my chances."

"Okay," she said. "I was going to have breakfast with Chris, but I guess I could meet you for a late cup of coffee to discuss this if it would make you happy." Keeping him happy and in the WWF was the most important thing right now. She could not afford a defection so soon into her tenure.

"Really? Great," he exclaimed. She turned to glance back at the bathroom where Chris was waiting, not seeing that Kurt was looking at her lecherously in just her robe. What he wouldn't give to rip that robe off right that moment. "You look really beautiful."

"Uh, thanks," she said, "Until tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, see you then," Kurt said enthusiastically. Stephanie closed the door as Chris walked out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist. She also noticed that his hair was wet so he must have quickly washed it.

"Who was that?"

"Kurt," she said, catching the scowl on Chris's face, "What?"

"What is _he_ doing coming up here?"

"He wanted to meet tomorrow to go over what he's going to be doing for the rest of the year," she told him. Chris rolled his eyes. "What?"

"The rest of the year? It's January, how the hell will you know what he's going to do in December of this year?"

"I don't know, but I have to keep him happy, it's just for now."

"He wants you, Stephanie, he wants you in the way that I have you," Chris said. "He wants to get in your pants."

"Kurt? He's way too innocent for that," she shrugged off Chris's concern. "There's no way that's on his brain. You're wrong, Chris, come on, that's silly."

"Is it?" he challenged.

"Yes," she told him. She went over to him and ran her hand up and down his side. "Chris, trust me, Kurt is just a nice guy who doesn't know boundaries, he has no designs on me."

"That's what you think," Chris said. Stephanie kissed him to shut him up. "Steph, he's trouble."

"He's not trouble, trust me, Chris, please."

He trusted her…just not with this.


	28. Chapter 28

A/N: Thanks for the reviews for this one, hope you enjoy this chapter and continue to review, and if you want, check out my new story, "Twilight on a Broken Star." :)

* * *

"Do you really want to meet with him?"

"No, not really, but I don't really have much of a choice, now do I?" Stephanie asked.

"Of course you have a choice," Chris said. "You can choose to stay if you want to, and tell him that he should just go…do whatever by himself."

"Don't get mad," Stephanie told him sternly. She widened her eyes at that. She really felt like a wife right then. Wow, were they already starting to get into old married couple territory? That was a scary thought, but also a very comforting one as well.

"I'm not getting mad," he said, though he was certainly frustrated. He knew what Kurt was trying to pull, but he didn't know how to get Stephanie to see it. He could tell her outright, but she still wouldn't believe him. She was so sure that Kurt was just all about the business, and he knew, he _knew_ that if Stephanie really looked at him, like took a good look at him, she would see what he was really trying to do.

"You are," she said with a smirk. "Chris, come on, what is the big problem with him?"

"Um, other than the fact that he wants to sleep with my wife, no problem at all," Chris said sarcastically

"Chris, let's not get into this again."

"Stephanie, I think we need to get into this," Chris said.

"Chris, I have to keep him happy, he's my newest employee, and I really think that he has the potential to do big things in this company and I want him happy so that he doesn't defect and go over to WCW."

"WCW is a crapshoot, he'd never go over there," Chris argued. "That place is horrible."

Stephanie reached up and ran her hands through his hair, "They just didn't know how to appreciate you over there. They never deserved you."

"You act like I'm some kind of jilted lover," he laughed. She pouted and he leaned in to kiss her to get the pout off her face. He still loved waking up to her makeup-free face. She was just so beautiful in the morning light, and when she smiled at him he just couldn't take her eyes off of her most of the time.

"Well, I still think that you didn't need them."

"I'm better off now," he said. "So come on, let's just stay in bed for the rest of the day. Our flight home isn't until tonight anyways, and we can just stay here and have our own kind of sight-seeing right here in bed."

"I said that the sight-seeing was a maybe, at best. I just didn't know what to do to pass the time until our flight later," she told him. "I didn't say that I was committed to sight-seeing, it was just a suggestion."

He laughed her defensiveness, "I think we should just stay in bed."

"No, we're not," she said in a sing-song voice. "I can't spend the entire day in bed, that's being completely ineffectual. I can't just do nothing, that's not fun for me. I've got a business to run."

"And a husband to please," he grinned lecherously. "One who needs pleasing."

"What is it with you?" she asked, shoving him a little bit. "You always want to be on top of me."

"That's not true, sometimes I want to be under you, or next to you," he said, then with a kind smile, "I love you."

"I love you too," she returned affectionately. He pulled her closer to him, letting her rest against his chest as she nestled more deeply into his body, letting him pull the covers over them even though it was morning and the sun was peeking in through the closed drapes. The room was still mostly dark though and they let it wash over them.

"I really don't want you going out with Kurt this morning."

"And I really don't care what you think," she said playfully. "It's business, Chris, when are you going to understand that."

"But it's not business to him."

"It is to me, and you trust me, right?" she asked. He nodded, which she felt against the top of her head. "Then just trust me, Chris. I just…I don't know, maybe he just sees me and thinks that he can get in my good graces, did you think about that? Maybe he's just a suck-up."

"Sure," he said unconvincingly.

"I don't want you to let this get to your head. I don't want you to be angry."

"I'm not angry," he responded. "We were just supposed to eat breakfast together. It's like our new thing, you know. Since we're at the shows all the time, we usually have to eat dinner separately, so we eat breakfast together, it's our thing."

"So we have a thing now?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "That's our thing, we're the couple that eats breakfast together."

"I'm still going to have breakfast with you," she told him. "I'll meet with Kurt after we eat breakfast so we don't waste this tradition of eating breakfast together."

Chris sighed. It wasn't what he wanted, but it was what he was going to get. He knew that Stephanie was his wife, mind, body, and soul, but there was still one thing about her that was bugging him and he just couldn't express it to her just yet. That one thing was just how quickly she had been willing to leave Andrew. She had been so adamant about marrying the guy, and then he had come along with a business offer of all things and she had accepted. She had been willing to marry a complete stranger to get what she wanted.

What if she pulled the same thing over him? He knew he was being slightly irrational, she said she loved him, and she had given him her virginity. He just didn't want to lose him. The thought scared him, and then thought that the thought of Stephanie leaving him scared him too. His life was so tied to hers now he was starting to think in couples and not just for himself anymore.

"Chris, what's wrong?" she asked quietly, feeling him tense against her.

"Nothing."

"I can feel that something's wrong."

"It's nothing, let's just go down and get some breakfast, okay?"

"Good, cause I'm starving," she said, already pulling away from him.

Later on, they were sitting down after going through the long buffet of food that the hotel was serving. Chris's plate looked like a mountain of food while Stephanie had been sensible and had only taken a few items. They both knew though that she would be sneaking food off of his plate so he got extras of everything that he picked up in the line as they went and sat down together. Already she was stealing his food since as soon as they sat down she took a hash brown off of his plate and smiling mischievously started to eat it right in front of him before she touched her fruit salad. He, in turn, took one of her grapes and popped it into his mouth.

"So are you sure that you can't just blow that guy off?" Chris asked again.

"No, if you were in the same position, I would cater to you too."

"Hey, I've only been around for like six months and I don't remember you giving me any special treatment when I first came into the company. There were no gift baskets, no flowers, no nothing," he said indignantly.

"Well, you were a jackass to me so I didn't want to give you anything," she responded, "but in case we've forgotten, I married you and now you have a lot of things, right? And you get a lot of little extra_benefits_, so I don't see why you're complaining."

"Extra benefits, I do like that," he said, grabbing another grape from her plate, narrowly missing her slapping at his hand. "Besides, maybe if you had been nice to me you would've gotten some extra attention, but you didn't, so I didn't."

"Yeah, well, I had to get your attention somehow," he said. He opened his mouth to speak again when someone sat down with them. He bit his lip as he looked over at Kurt Angle.

"Hey, Steph," Kurt said, completely ignoring Chris's presence which just irked him more. The guy obviously saw that he was having breakfast with his wife, but he took that as an invitation to sit down with them.

"Oh, uh, hey, Kurt, good morning," Stephanie said uncomfortably, shooting Chris an apologetic glance. He looked down at his plate of food and began eating, trying to ignore the man sitting next to him leering at his wife.

"Yeah, it's beautiful today, huh?"

"Uh, sure," she said, looking out the window. "What can I do for you? Did you need anything?"

"No, I just saw you over here and thought that we could start our meeting a little early today, you know, I really want to get down to the nitty-gritty of what I want my character to be," he explained. "I think that it would be a great time for me to just figure out what I want to do, you know, who I want to be."

"A jackass," Chris muttered to himself and Stephanie kicked him under the table. He winced and continued to eat.

"Well, as you can see, Kurt, I was kind of eating right now, so if you could maybe…wait, that would be great," she said delicately.

"Oh yeah, sure, I haven't eaten either, mind if I sit here?" he asked genially, giving her what he thought was his most winning smile. She was starting to think that the man had no boundaries whatsoever.

"Well, Chris and I were almost done," she lied, knowing that if Kurt were to sit here, it would be a very volatile situation. She could see that Chris was already getting tense just having the man here. She, herself, thought Kurt was just a clueless, well-meaning dork, but her husband had different ideas, and she didn't want a fight to break out here, and she certainly didn't want Chris to be the reason why Kurt wouldn't want to fully commit to the WWF. "Why don't you eat, and I can go upstairs and change and look a little more presentable."

"I think you look gorgeous," Kurt told her.

"Okay, that's--" Chris started to say angrily.

"Come on, Chris, let's go get dressed," Stephanie said quickly, grabbing a pancake and a hashbrown off of Chris's plate and pulling him away, almost pushing him out of the eating area. He let himself get pushed to the elevator before stopping. "Chris, you can't let him get to you."

"Stephanie, I don't see how you can't see what's going on here!"

"Don't use that tone with me," she warned him. "I have to do things for business, you know that. Kurt is just a complete loser, that's all. He obviously doesn't know limits, but some people are just like that."

"You're too trusting," he told her. "You can't trust everyone you meet."

"I don't!" she told him, frustrated by this conversation. "But in business sometimes you have to act nice to people you don't like. You of all people should know that. I mean, you've been in this business, and you've had to pretend to respect guys that you had no respect for, am I right?"

"Yeah," he said, gloomily.

"So I'm doing the same thing here. Don't you trust me, Chris? If we don't have any trust here…"

"I trust you," he told her. "I just hate that he thinks I don't exist. I'm your husband, damn it, that has to mean something. I'm sitting there and he's acting like you're single or something, who the hell does he think he is pulling this crap?"

"Chris, please, for me, just let it go," she asked of him. "I don't need this on my plate right now. I'm trying to be a good boss, I'm trying to bring in new wrestlers, and this isn't going to help me. It's not easy work, and I know that you hate this, but he's just a loser, I swear, he's probably just trying to suck up to me."

"Yeah."

"Yeah, see, he's a total kiss-ass, and I recognize that," she told him. "Not for one second do I believe he's sincere, I just need to appease him for a while until he gets into the rhythm of things, then he definitely won't want to leave."

"Okay…I just don't like you around him."

"Well, I'll give him a valet or something, to detract away from me, how does that sound?"

"So you'll basically make a girl follow him around?"

"Well, that's not a very nice way of putting it, but sure," she laughed, "But it'll keep him away from me, how does that sound?"

"That sounds good."


	29. Chapter 29

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the sluttiest bitch in all the land."

"What do you want, Hunter?" Stephanie asked as she saw him leaning on the wall next to her office. "I have a lot of work to do."

"What? I can't come and see my most favorite girl in the entire world."

Her face turned to stone, "Cut the crap, Hunter, we both know that you can't stand my guts for whatever reason."

"Whatever reason? Oh, I don't know, putting me in unfair matches, maybe that has something to do with it. Everyone thinks that you're some great boss, that you and your _husband_," he spat out, "are the best bosses ever, but I see through you and your stupid, little act."

"What act would that be?" she wondered.

"That you're this innocent, little girl or whatever shit it isn't that you're trying to pull. That you only have the good of the company in your sights. I don't even believe you're really with Chris Jericho. You expect me to believe that you fell in love with this guy and decided to marry him over what, a few days? Please, this is just business, so what's he getting out of it?"

"I love him," Stephanie said, looking Hunter straight in the eye.

"You probably spend most of your time on your back and I don't think it's with Chris, you probably sell yourself on every street corner."

"Man, you are _really_ burned because I wanted to put you in a handicap match, aren't you?" Stephanie joked, which didn't amuse Hunter in the slightest. He glared at her rather, giving her the dirtiest look he could muster at the moment.

"I'm just calling you like I see you."

"I don't think that you know me at all," Stephanie said. "I think that you insult me because you want me. Is that it, Hunter? Do you just want to get your hands on my body? All these little insults, is that the reason why?"

"Like hell I'd touch you."

"It's so nice that you want me, Hunter, but I'm a married woman now."

"Yeah, who left her fiancé at the altar for another man," he scoffed.

"So?" she asked. "I wasn't happy and I'm happy with Chris. He'll be glad to know that you're so jealous of him though. I know that this bitterness towards me is only because you want me so much, and I really, really am flattered."

"You're a slut," he said plainly.

"Well, you're an overgrown Neanderthal, your point being…besides, the only man that I sleep with is my husband, the man that I'm married to, and the current WWF champion," Stephanie said. "Is that what bugs you? That Chris is better than you are? Well, that's too bad. Sorry, Hunter, maybe next time."

Stephanie pushed past him and went into her office as Chris wandered upon him after seeing that he was speaking with his wife. "Trips, hanging out around my wife are you?"

"You mean that bitch."

"Nah, the only bitch around here I see is the whiny one right in front of me," Chris said. "You're pathetic, man."

He too went into Stephanie's office and saw her just sitting down to her desk and the stack of papers in front of her. She looked up at him and smiled. He came over and gave her a peck on the lips before he leaned with his butt against the desk, facing her. She went over some of the contracts for the upcoming Pay-Per-View and they were happy to just be quiet for a few minutes.

"Hunter didn't give you any trouble, did he?" Chris asked.

"Nothing I couldn't handle," she responded. "It was just the usual stuff, you know, I'm a slut, I'm a bitch, I'm always on my back because I'm such a whore. How I don't know how to run the company, that stuff."

"What a bunch of bull," said Chris, shaking his head as he looked down on her. "The farthest thing you are is a slut."

"I don't care what he says, let him say it, he's just really bitter," Stephanie shrugged. She didn't know why Hunter had decided to target her in particular, but Hunter was all about bucking authority. Now that her father had run off, the next logical choice was Stephanie herself. "He wants the title and he doesn't have the title so he's going to act like a spoiled, little boy. I know how it goes."

"He's not getting his hands on that baby," Chris said, jerking a thumb towards the title belt which was sitting on top of the couch in Stephanie's office. Chris wasn't the type of guy to wear that thing everywhere. Everyone knew that he was the champion, he didn't need to broadcast it all over the place.

"Well, he can't get the title if he doesn't have a title match to begin with, even though I know I'm going to have to give in," Stephanie said. "Just how it goes, you know, I can't hold him down forever."

"I know, I'll just have to kick his ass then," he smiled, leaning down to kiss Stephanie. She leaned her head up to get at him more.

She pulled away after a few moments and then said, "Hunter even had the audacity to say that I didn't love you, that just because we got married on a whim that we don't love each other."

"Well, we didn't when we got married," he pointed out.

"Yeah, but I love you now, and that counts for everything," she told him, intertwining their hands together, their matching wedding bands brilliant in the fluorescent light. "He's probably just jealous that he's not as brilliant as you to come up to me and want to get married."

"You're crazy," he said, going in for more lip action. She smiled against his lips, her giddiness transferring to him and they were both trying to kiss the other, but the grins on their faces were preventing their lips from meeting correctly. She giggled and pulled away, her hands on his cheeks, trying to steady him as she tilted her head and kissed him deeper.

They both heard the door open and Chris looked over his shoulder as Stephanie peeked around Chris to see who it was. Chris groaned quietly as he saw his great nemesis at the door. He was starting to believe that Kurt had some secret camera that was constantly trained on Stephanie and whenever he saw the two of them he had to come barging in. Stephanie looked up at Chris with an apologetic look, but he had already turned away.

She sighed and hated the angry and almost hurt look on Chris's face. She turned to Kurt, "Kurt, what is it?"

"Sorry, I didn't want to interrupt…"

"Yeah right, Chris grumbled under his breath.

"Just tell me what it is and then you can leave."

"Well, I was just wondering what I had planned for the evening."

"You can pick up a schedule, Kurt, and you know that we have the company meeting in oh," Stephanie looked at her watch, "an hour and we go over everything at that point. You couldn't wait another hour?"

"Sorry, I'm just getting used to everything."

"Yeah, okay," she said, and now she was starting to just get a little annoyed by Kurt. It mostly had to do with the look on Chris's face. She didn't like seeing that look on his face and she wanted to erase it right now. "Actually, now that you're here, Kurt, there's something that I would like to discuss with you."

"Yeah?" he said brightly, stepping forward a bit more. Chris got off the desk and Stephanie thought he was going to leave so she placed a hand on his thigh and shook her head slightly. Getting her meaning (one of those things that reeked of the familiarity that was growing between them) he leaned back against the wall, putting his right foot up against it as he folded his arms in front of him. He chewed on his gum angrily, the smacking distracting for Stephanie.

"Have a seat," Stephanie said charmingly and Chris sucked at his teeth a little bit. Kurt smiled back at her, that stupid shit-eating grin on his face. Chris looked down a moment as Kurt took a seat. "So, I wanted to discuss something that I wanted to do with your character."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yes, I feel like…right now you need something."

"I do?" he said, raising his eyebrow. He smirked at her, wondering if she was going to say anything close to what he wanted to hear. He licked his lips and Chris almost threw himself across the table at the other man, wanting to throttle him.

"I want to give you a manager."

"What?"

"A manager," Stephanie said brightly. "We've got this new diva coming in, her name is Trish Stratus and I think that she would be _perfect_ for you. Absolutely perfect."

"Wait, I don't need a manager."

"Sure you do, someone to come ringside with you and someone to cheer you on, it'll be great," she said. "I really think that her being by your side will be something that the fans want to see, I know I want to see it, Chris?"

"That'd be great," Chris said smugly as he made eye contact with Kurt. He narrowed his eyes a little bit as he watched Kurt's reaction. Kurt's jaw was set tight and he was staring a hole right into Chris. Stephanie looked over at her husband, but didn't say anything right then.

"See, he agrees, I think it'd be a good career move. She's coming next week to see around here and see how it is backstage, so I think that you can show her around since I'm going to make her your manager. Show her a good time, make her want to come to work here, because you do like working here, right, Kurt?"

"Uh, yeah," he said, staring at her chest.

"I thought so, you're such a dear," Stephanie said with false coyness. She batted her eyelashes a little bit and Kurt was putty in her hands. "That's all I needed."

"You know what, Steph, what if you came out to my matches? I think that if I had the president of the company coming out with my matches, I thin the fans would really support me," Kurt said, surprising both Stephanie and Chris was his proposition. "If I want to get on top, I think I need you by my side."

"What? Excuse me?" Chris said, his voice disbelieving. "No way, no goddamn way are you going to have my wife be your manager."

"Why not? She has her own brain, I think that she should be able to decide for herself who she goes out with and who she doesn't," Kurt countered.

"Because she's my wife! If she's going to go out with anyone, it's going to be me, not you, not some random guy who has no attachments to her whatsoever!"

"I still think that she can decide."

"She's my wife, what don't you get about that, Angle?" Chris asked. "What part of the whole, Stephanie McMahon-_Jericho_ thing do you not understand? Did you not see it when we announced that we were married, do you not see the wedding bands on our fingers, do you not see us together all the time? What part of that doesn't smack together to you?"

"Chris, honey, calm down," Stephanie said, laying a hand on his arm.

"No, I'm not going to, look, Stephanie gave you a manager, and I'm sure she's great, so go with it, some guys are just shoved out there, she's trying to help you and you're practically throwing it back in her face!"

"I'm not throwing it back in her face, I just think that Stephanie would be better."

"I'm outta here," Chris said, shoving past Stephanie, who tried to reach out to him but was too late. Chris stormed out of the room, needing to catch his breath. The anger and hatred that he felt for Kurt threatened to choke him. It was like the air was being sucked out of the room slowly and he needed to get out or suffocate. He rubbed his forehead before wandering off. He didn't want to blow up in front of Stephanie any more and scare her or something.

Stephanie glared at Kurt, "Kurt, I'm not going to be your manager, that's it, okay, you're getting Trish."

"But I don't want Trish, I don't even know who she is."

"I don't care, she's your new manager and that's it."

"But--"

"No buts! I'm sorry, Kurt, but I can't be your manager. I have a lot of work to do and I have Chris to worry about too. I go out to his matches and that's about all I can really handle right now. I'm really sorry, but that's just the way that it has to be. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go find my husband."

Stephanie left without another word. Kurt scowled as she left. That hadn't gone how he planned it at all. He thought Stephanie was a bright, beautiful, intelligent woman, and she happened to be the most powerful woman in all of wrestling. Kurt wasn't usually one to try and sleep his way to the top, but when you had someone as innocently sexy as Stephanie McMahon, who you might've been flew right out the window. He smirked as he looked over at the WWF title belt, something he wanted to be holding onto very, very soon.

Hopefully with Stephanie on his arm as well.

Stephanie wandered the hallways and finally went outdoors where she saw Chris sitting down on the edge of a walkway, his feet dangling as he had his arms draped across the lowest metal bar that prevented people from falling. She wandered over and sat next to him, emulating his position. They didn't speak for a few moments, but she did reach out and grab his hand to hold it in her own.

"I told him in no uncertain terms that I was not going to be his manager, not now, not ever."

"Good," was Chris's short reply.

"I know that he…might have bad intentions with me…"

"_Might_?"

"Okay, he _does_ have them, but I'm committed to you, Chris, I'm commited to this relationship."

"Are you?"

"What?"

"How committed are you?"

"What the hell kind of question is that?"

"Nothing, never-mind."

"No, what is it?"

"I just…you left Andrew on a dime…why not me?"

"I didn't love Andrew, I didn't, I love you, I've given you everything of me, Chris, everything," she said, scooting as close to him as she could get. "I love you, Chris, you know that, you know me now, you do. You're…you're my best friend, I'd never betray you like that."

He turned to look at her. "I love you too."

"So you believe me then?"

"I believe you."


	30. Chapter 30

"So welcome to the WWF, Trish."

"Thanks," Trish said, shaking Stephanie's hand. "I really am looking forward to this. I never thought I would be a wrestler, you know, or a manager, whatever. I was in pre-med, you know, and then I started doing some fitness modeling and now this."

"Sounds like a really strange trip," Stephanie told her.

"You could say that. I think this should be fun," Trish said, looking around. Stephanie could tell that she was sucking up. There was something about Trish that seemed kind of sinister, well, maybe that wasn't the right word, but she seemed calculated. Stephanie was sure that she wasn't exactly this nice, but she didn't much care as long as the girl did her job.

"I think you will have fun, now I was going to start you off being Kurt Angle's manager."

"Oh, I was kind of hoping to find my own wrestler to manage," Trish told her. "Would that be a problem?"

Stephanie wanted to answer that it would be a problem, but she kept her mouth shut. She wanted to tell Trish that she was going to be Kurt's manager or else, but she couldn't much tell her that because then she'd start asking too many questions. She wanted to keep Kurt away from her because she knew that it made Chris upset when Kurt was constantly around her.

"Well, have you watched wrestling a lot?"

"I can't say that I have, but I can pick up on stuff really quickly, so I don't think it'll be a problem."

"Oh, well, I was just wondering if you had actually seen Kurt because he's one of our up-and-coming stars, and I would think a lot of women would want to be his manager, you know," Stephanie said, trying to make Kurt sound enticing. "I envision that he'll be one of our best guys very soon, and he's an Olympic gold medalist."

"That's nice," Trish said dully, "but I would still like to find a guy for myself, or more than one."

"Oh, well, yeah, I guess that would be okay."

"Great."

Chris walked in the door then. He had forgotten his wrist tape and he had a match coming up in a short while. His belt was in here too and he needed to get it. He looked up and saw that Stephanie was actually in a meeting with an attractive-looking blonde whom he assumed to be Trish Stratus, since he had never seen her before and Stephanie had mentioned that she would be here this week getting a feel for everything backstage.

"Sorry, you were in a meeting," he said sheepishly.

"No, that's okay," Trish said. "We were just finishing up."

"Oh cool," Chris said, sticking his hand out. "Chris Jericho."

"Nice to meet you, Chris Jericho, I'm Trish Stratus, I'm new here."

"I figured as much since I've never seen you before," Chris told her. He looked over at Stephanie. "Steph, have you seen my wrist tape?"

"Your bag probably," she said. "Don't forget your belt."

"I came back for that too," he said, going over to Stephanie and leaning down to give her a small peck on the lips, "thanks for reminding me though."

"Oh, are you two together?" Trish asked, looking between the two of them.

They held up their matching bands as Stephanie said, "Yeah, we're married actually, still pretty much newlyweds, less than a year together actually."

"Oh, congratulations," she said, but she was still eyeing Chris, who was smiling down at the ring on Stephanie's finger. He loved when she talked about them being married. It wasn't like he needed the reminder because he knew it well enough, but he just had to smile when she acknowledged the fact that they were man and wife.

"Thanks," they said in unison and then they laughed at the other.

"Well, you can go ahead and walk around," Stephanie said.

"Hey, I can show you around a little bit if you want," Chris said, trying to be friendly, "If you'll give me a few minutes to get my things together, I can just show you what the WWF has to offer, if you want to of course."

"I want to, definitely," Trish said, once again giving Chris the once over. He noticed and wanted to laugh, but didn't. "I'll just wait outside for you."

"Okay, I shouldn't be a few minutes," Chris responded. Trish closed the door behind her and he looked to Stephanie, who was looking up at him questioningly, "What!"

"What was that!" she asked with a soft laugh. "You're leading her on, Chris, and you know it."

"Leading her on what? I told her straight up that we were married, it's not like she doesn't know that now. Besides, she's pretty, she'll look good on TV, so we shouldn't let her get to WCW. We have to make sure that we get all the best talent."

"Is that the only reason?"

"Hell yeah that's the only reason," he told her as he went to his bag to grab the wrist tape. Stephanie stood up with him and she grabbed it from him and took one of his wrists, starting to tape it for him.

"She doesn't want to be Kurt's manager," Stephanie told him, glancing up at him from her task at hand. His expression was emotionless, but she knew he was boiling beneath the surface.

"Why not?"

"She said that she wants to find someone herself," Stephanie shrugged. "I could force her, but that wouldn't be the best way for her to start her stay here. I don't want to create animosity before she's even started."

"I understand," he sighed, "just as long as you aren't Kurt's new manager."

"Don't worry, I'm not, just you. Do you want me to come out there with you tonight?" Stephanie asked. "I forgot to ask you if you wanted me to tag along with you."

"You don't have to if you've got work."

"I do," she lamented, "but if you want me to…"

"It's fine," he said, kissing her as she finished up with his second wrist. "I don't need you out there for me to win. You're the president, you've got a ton of stuff that you need to do that doesn't include pounding on the mat for me to win."

"You get me so well," Stephanie said sweetly as she pursed her lips together and silently asking for a kiss. He deigned her with another kiss and she smiled against his lips. "Good luck."

"Thanks, I better go though," he told her. He went over and grabbed his title, waving it a little as he walked out the door where Trish was waiting. She smiled and pushed herself off the wall. "Hey again, Trish, right?"

"Yeah, right, and you're Chris."

"Yeah, so we really do want you to join here, and we're glad that you're on the verge of it," Chris said as they walked down the hallway. "I made the switch over from WCW not too long ago and it was the best decision I ever made."

"When did you join?"

"Last August."

"Wow, so you and Stephanie were married before that?"

"No, we got married afterwards," Chris said. "It was a whirlwind thing."

"Oh, so you haven't been together for that long," she said.

"Um, yeah, I guess you could say that, but I love her all the same," he said with a smile. "She's great at what she does, you couldn't ask for a better boss, trust me, and I really think that you'll like working here."

"I think I will too," Trish said, "so you've been wrestling long?"

"Debuted in 1990."

"Wow," she said, "it must get really hard on the road, does it?"

"It used to. I mean, you should know now that relationships are hard. That's probably what suffers the most while you're here. If you have a relationship with someone not in the business, it's going to suffer, that's just how it goes. That's why so many wrestlers have relationships with divas and stuff, it's easier."

"Oh…I don't have a boyfriend," she told him. He was a very attractive man. She had seen hotter guys, definitely, but they didn't have the kind of magnetism that Chris so obviously had. He wasn't wearing a shirt right now since he had a match soon, and she could definitely appreciate his body. He was muscular, but he wasn't too muscular and she liked that in a man. His hair was pulled back in a half-ponytail and he had beautiful blue eyes.

"That's good, then."

"You think so?"

"Well, a lot of guys do have wives and stuff outside, but it's really easy to cheat around here, it happens all the time, so it's just really difficult. I've been on both sides and I like it much better now."

"Lots of…cheating?"

"Oh yeah, but don't worry, it's not like some guy is going to force you into an affair or anything," Chris told her, not realizing that Trish was already thinking about what an affair with Chris would be like. There had to be a reason why he would talk about cheating and affairs with her. That had to mean he was already tired of his mousy wife who probably liked business more than him.

"Good, I wouldn't want to be…forced."

"Yeah, it's so much better now that I'm married, I don't have to worry about all that shit anymore," Chris said happily.

"Yeah, you wouldn't want to worry about that kind of thing," Trish told him. Some people would call Trish a black widow or something. She was constantly looking for something better than what she had. That's why she hadn't gone into pre-med at all. Something better had come along and she had taken it. It extended to men as well, when she saw something better come along, she would snatch that with both hands too.

Now there was Chris.

He had the WWF title slung over his shoulder and even though she wasn't terribly familiar with wrestling, she knew that this was what everyone wanted. If she were to align herself with Chris, that would mean she was aligning herself with the WWF champion and what better way to jumpstart a career than to get with one of the most powerful men in the company. She wondered if he was a breast or a leg man. She had both to spare so it didn't really matter.

"So you're the champion, huh?"

"That's right."

"So you're like the top dog?" she asked.

"You could say that," he said. "I'm definitely the guy that everyone is gunning for."

"Oh, that must be really hard."

"I like it. I never got this in WCW. I was kind of held back while I was there."

"Oh, that's so rough," she said sympathetically, adding a lilt to her voice.

"Not really, it's a great position to be in, actually. I never even got the chance to be the champion while I was in WCW, so this is much better," he said, patting the title, "I'm glad for the opportunity to represent the company."

"That's so cool. So do you need a manager or anything?"

"Are you asking?" he said.

"I might be. Stephanie said I could scout around and I don't see her coming out with you, so I'm guessing that she just doesn't come out with you, and you're the _champion_, you should have someone out there with you."

"Oh, she does come out with me," Chris said. "So sorry, I'm taken."

"Oh, okay," she said.

"I've got to go, sorry this couldn't be more of a tour, but I've got a match."

"That's okay, don't worry about it," she told him. He smiled and then ran off to his match. She watched him go. She took in how snug those tights were on his legs and he might not know it right now, but she was going to make sure that she got to be his manager, and then if something were to go farther than that, well, he said it himself that there was a lot of cheating in the business.

This wouldn't be the last he'd see of her.


	31. Chapter 31

"So Trish decided that she wanted to manage Andrew and Albert."

"Oh."

"Oh? What oh?" Stephanie said as she looked up at her husband. He was sitting across the desk from her, his feet propped up on the table as he idly wrapped some wrist tape around his right wrist. He was moving at a snail's pace though, probably just doing this task to waste time until he actually had something to do.

"Nothing."

"No, that was definitely a substance-filled oh," Stephanie said, looking at him critically. Chris was just staring at the wrist tape like it was made of gold or something. "Wait a second…you thought she was going to ask to manage _you_, didn't you?"

"No, I didn't," he said defensively.

"Yes, you did. I saw the way she was looking at you, and you were probably eating it up, weren't you?"

"How can you suggest that?" he asked her.

"Because I have _eyes_," Stephanie told him. "So what, you're hurt that she didn't ask to manage you, is that it, Chris? Are you mad because she wanted to manage other people, is that what's going on?"

"What are you talking about? I didn't even say anything about that."

"You didn't have to say anything, I could read it on your face. So what, you just want her to be your manager?"

Chris couldn't understand why Stephanie was acting like this. He hadn't even said anything about having Trish as his manager. Sure, a little part of him thought that she would ask him, the part of him that knew that she had been checking him out when he had been showing her around. He wasn't a stupid man, he knew that she was attractive and he thought she might like him, but it never went beyond that. He loved the woman with the fiery blue eyes sitting in front of him, her guns ready to come from their holster and blast him away.

"No, I didn't say I wanted her to be my manager."

Chris didn't see, and maybe this had something to do with the lack of time they had to get to know each other, that Stephanie was completely jealous. She knew Trish was really pretty and voluptuous and she had seen the way Trish had looked at Chris when she introduced them. The thought that Chris might want to actually partner with that woman stirred something inside of her that she had never really felt before, at least not with this depth of loathing.

"Well do you want her to be your manager?" Stephanie said.

"Stephanie, come on, this is stupid."

"Oh, so now I'm stupid?" Stephanie asked him. "I just asked you a simple question."

"Stephanie, why are you acting like this is a life or death situation? No, I don't want her to be my manager, why would I?" he asked. "I think that you're totally blowing this out of proportion. I was just saying oh."

"So now you're mocking me?"

"Is it that time of month for you?"

Stephanie groaned. "I'm leaving."

"Stephanie, what's the matter with you?" Chris said, totally confused by her behavior. How could she blow up so easily?

Stephanie didn't believe him. It seemed like he wanted to have Trish side-by-side with him and _she_ was the one who was supposed to accompany him, not that…that woman. She had her eyes all over her husband when she introduced them. If Stephanie hadn't been there, she would've probably been all over Chris. She seemed like the type, not to mention Stephanie had seen first-hand how Trish had recruited herself to Andrew and Albert and neither one was as good-looking as Chris.

"I'm leaving, don't follow me," she said flatly as she stalked right out of the room, leaving a very stunned Chris behind her.

She figured that maybe he was telling the truth, but she wasn't sure. Sometimes she just wasn't sure of anything. It was stupid, she knew that, no, wait, it wasn't stupid. She and Chris hadn't been together for that long, but she had already invested so much into him and she felt like if he left her, she would just lose everything in one fell swoop. It was so stupid for her to rely so much on him. She was self-sufficient and strong, at least Chris thought so. There he was again. Damn it, when had he gotten so into everything about her. When had she become part of Chris and Stephanie and not just Stephanie?

She sat down in a chair that happened to be sitting in a little alcove just off the main hallway. She leaned her head against the wall and took a few deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. Once she knew she was thinking rationally again, she would see that Chris was right and he had not given any indication for wanting Trish as his manager. Maybe she was just baiting him, testing him to see what he would do, how he would react, but then, maybe she was right to assume that he would want Trish. She was so confused and upset and angry and she was just a jumble of feelings right now.

"Stephanie?"

And that was the last voice she needed to hear. "What?"

"What are you doing?"

"Nothing, can't you see that," she told him, rubbing her temples.

"Are you okay?"

"Do I look okay to you?" she asked harshly, but she didn't care how she sounded.

"Um, no, is everything okay?"

"I'm fine, maybe I'm sitting here because I want to be left alone, did you think about that?" Stephanie said, finally looking up at Kurt. "I would like to be left alone."

"It's my experience that if you're angry, you should lt it out with someone and you shouldn't be left alone," Kurt told her.

"I don't care what you think," Stephanie said.

"Oh, well, I'll sit here with you anyways."

"No thank you," she said plainly. She just wanted to be left alone with her anger. What did Kurt even want? She was getting pissed off just listening to his voice and it was grating on her nerves and she wanted him gone.

"Hey, you know, I was supposed to get a female tag partner for a mixed-tag match tonight," Kurt said. "I haven't really been able to find one. It's against that new girl Trish and Test, I haven't…well, do you think that maybe you would want to…I don't know, do you think you'd want to be my partner?"

Stephanie hadn't been listening to a word he said. Her head was starting to ache a tiny bit and she had been trying to block out all sound so she could nip this in the bud. She was aware that Kurt was saying something to her, but she had no clue as to what he was saying. It didn't matter anyways, she didn't want to talk to Kurt and therefore didn't care what he said to her.

"Yeah, sure, whatever, Kurt," she told him, thinking that would get him away. She was vaguely aware of him asking her a question and she figured he had asked for time on the show.

"You'll be my partner! Thanks, Stephanie!" Kurt said, delighted that she had actually agreed. This was definitely progress. He knew that he just had to get her away from that husband of hers and she would be putty in his hands. Now she was actually agreeing to be his tag partner and he might have to accidentally graze her in the ring.

That snapped Stephanie out of her haze. "What? What are you talking about?"

"You just agreed to be my partner," Kurt said happily. "Thanks so much, our match is on at the halfway mark, I'll just come get you."

"What? No, no, I can't wrestle, no," Stephanie told him, standing up to face him.

"Why not?"

"I don't know how," she said the first thing that came to her lips.

"Does Trish know how to wrestle?"

"No…"

"Then you'll be fine," he told her.

"I don't have ring gear," she said quickly.

"What you have on is fine," Kurt said. Stephanie looked down at her pants and t-shirt. _This_ was okay to wrestle in? What kind of women's wrestling had Kurt ever seen?

"I can't, I just…I can't."

"You said you would though, you can't go back on your word," Kurt said.

"I'm the boss, I have things to do."

"But you said you would," Kurt said and Stephanie felt like she was being backed into a corner. Kurt didn't look like he was going to take no for an answer. But she was the boss.

"No, Kurt, I'm not going to partner with you," she told him firmly.

"Then why did you say you would?" he inquired, tilting his head to look at her.

"Because I wasn't really listening to what you were saying…wait a second, did you say that Trish was the female in the match?" Stephanie asked.

"Yeah, it's her and Test."

"Her and Test, you say…"

The churning was beginning in Stephanie's brain. Her synapses were connecting and building and so too was the idea that went along with them. She had nothing really against Trish, not this soon anyways; Stephanie figured that she could be an important asset to the WWF. Still, it wouldn't hurt to send the girl a little message that Chris was her man. She sucked at her teeth a little bit.

"Okay, fine, I guess you did back me into a corner with this one," Stephanie said. "Come get me when it's time."

"Cool," Kurt said, walking away thinking he was actually making progress with Stephanie.

Stephanie just walked around before her "match." She didn't want to come face-to-face with Chris right now. He'd surely talk her out of this if he found out. One, he would not want her anywhere near Kurt, two, he would not want her wrestling, and three, he wouldn't want her to go after someone for the likes of him. So she just avoided him altogether. She saw him a couple of times, just his back, and she would turn around and walk the other way just as Chris would turn around, feeling like he was being watched.

The time came for her match and she knew that Chris must know by now because Kurt had made an announcement in a backstage interview that he was teaming with the WWE president. There's no way Chris hadn't seen that or at least heard about it from someone. She went to the gorilla position and sure enough, there he was, glaring at her, his arms folded. She knew she should get loose, just in case she actually had to do something in this match so she emulated what Chris did before his matches, jumping around, stretching, not knowing that she was catching Kurt's eye.

Chris turned his glare to Kurt, who was staring down his wife as she hopped around. Kurt turned around when he heard his music hit and his eye caught Kurt's and Kurt gave him a sly, little smile that made Chris want to rip it right off his face. Stephanie went out with him, feeling quite awkward as she made her way down the ramp. Everyone was booing Kurt and booing her in turn, which was kind of a turnaround for her since Chris got readily cheered by everyone and so did she as soon as she had turned on her father and taken over and started putting on a better show.

Test and Trish were already in the ring and they had gotten boos too, so she guessed that there were just a lot of dislikeable people in this match. Kurt and Test obviously started off, locking up with one another as they started to fight, Trish and Stephanie keeping mostly out of the way. Stephanie stared down her competition on the other end of the ring. Trish wasn't really paying attention, but Stephanie just continued to stare.

Kurt was getting the upper-hand on Test, using his agility and talent to power by Test, laving the larger man to lumber after him. Kurt got a couple German suplexes on him and Test was laid out on the mat while Kurt went for the pin. Test kicked out of it and Kurt got frustrated and got up. He stomped his foot to the jeering of the crowd. Test went over to Trish and though she was reluctant to accept, he gave her the tag. Because of the rules, Kurt was forced to tag in Stephanie, who climbed through the ropes to face her opponent.

The two women looked at each other warily, not sure what to do. They were just circling each other. The crowd was starting to get tired of the non-action and neither man seemed to be in a rush to tag in. Stephanie had pretty much no training at all, but she watched a lot of matches and knew a few things, so she did one of the few things she knew how to do: she clotheslined Trish to the ground. Trish was so surprised that it knocked her onto her back.

Stephanie felt good about that and started to kick Trish in the stomach. She continued to do so, happily pounding away at the blonde. Then she got down and started punching Trish. She didn't realize that the guys had been fighting outside of the ring and now Kurt was down. Test came into the ring and maybe it was more revenge that fueled him, but when Stephanie got up, she was met with a boot to the face and she felt herself falling like she was in a perpetual state of slow motion.

Then she hit the mat and everything just seemed to kind of fade.


	32. Chapter 32

Kurt rushed to Stephanie's side, kneeling next to her as the referee disqualified Test and Trish for having Test kick Stephanie, which was explicitly against the rules. Kurt ran his hand over Stephanie's hair, trying to make sure she was okay, but she appeared to either be out or very groggy. He head was turned to the side so he really couldn't tell. He brought his hand to her cheek and gently turned her face towards him.

"Stephanie, Stephanie, can you hear me?" Kurt asked gently.

"Chris," she mumbled lowly, but Kurt was unable to understand what she was saying.

"Are you okay?" Kurt asked her and she opened her eyes to narrow slits, but her eyes weren't focusing because of the bright lights overhead. Had the lights always been so bright over the ring? They felt like they were blinding her, taking away everything except their intense whiteness that seemed to burn her retinas.

"Mmm," she mumbled again, this time incoherently. Was Chris around? She wanted Chris. That's all she could think of at the moment. She could usually sense when Chris was around, but she couldn't sense him right now, but he should be here. She wasn't feeling well and he was supposed to be here when she wasn't feeling well.

Unfortunately for her, Chris was gainfully ignoring her match. After he had seen Stephanie traipsing out there with Kurt, he had retreated to his locker room to stew. He didn't need to watch Stephanie gallivanting around with that idiot. He knew she was trying to get a rise out of him and it was sure as hell working, but he wasn't going to let her know that it was irking him. Instead, he was just going to sit in his locker room and act as if her match was nothing and he didn't care who she teamed with or when.

Inside though, he was steaming, his blood was bubbling and sizzling like a fiery cauldron of liquid almost ready to spew. He couldn't believe she would stoop so low as to use that…that man who was so obviously after her. Kurt was probably getting the wrong idea as he sat there thinking. Well if Kurt had half a brain he'd realize that Chris wasn't going to let Stephanie go any time soon. He loved her and she was his wife and that meant something. Regardless of how they started their relationship, it meant something now and he'd be damned if that Olympic loser got what he had.

He was tempted to turn on the TV, but he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction. He was just going to sit here and wait for her to get back and when she started bragging about her match and her maybe win, he would just sit there and shrug and say that he hadn't bothered to watch the match because he had better things to do. That would make her equally as mad and she'd stomp out of here and then…well, then what?

He and Stephanie had never really fought like this before. When they had been fake-married there was nothing really to argue about. Though he was falling for her, and she for him, they were still using their relationship as a business venture. There was no need to fight over business ventures. Was this their first real fight? Well, it didn't feel very good, he could tell you that right now. How could they resolve this? Maybe Stephanie would come to her senses and see that he didn't care if Trish wanted to be his valet. He was perfectly happy with having Stephanie as his valet.

Okay, now he had to turn on the TV. He grabbed the remote and turned on the closed-circuit television they had in the locker room so guys could watch the show. JR and King were announcing and Chris listened as they spoke. It was obvious he had just missed Stephanie's match and he was grateful he didn't have to see Stephanie celebrating just to rub it in his face.

"We're not sure if Stephanie McMahon-Jericho is going to be alright," JR said gravely. "Kurt carried her out of here to get medical attention and we'll update you when we know how she is."

"I hate to see good puppies go to waste like that," King said, trying to sound sympathetic but coming off as perverted.

Chris's eyes widened. Stephanie was hurt? Damn it, he should've watched the match. He stood up and was going to go to the trainer's office, where no doubt Stephanie was right then, when the switch of scenes on the TV caught his eye and he stopped to watch as he saw the familiar flash of brown hair out of the corner of his eye. Just the right color and length it was.

Stephanie didn't know how she was moving, but she knew her feet weren't touching the ground. That was funny, was she floating? Maybe she had developed the power to float around. That would be a good wrestling advantage. Maybe she could learn how she did this and then teach it to Chris so he could float too.

"I'll get you backstage," Kurt said to her.

"Uh huh," she said groggily. Someone was talking to her, but it wasn't Chris so she didn't care to think about who it might be. Maybe they would pass her off to Chris and he would make everything all better. He seemed to have an uncanny knack at making everything better for her.

She closed her eyes and just let whoever was carrying her keep going. She didn't feel like walking. She was pretty tired right now and she just wanted to sleep. Maybe she should just fall asleep right now. She could hear a door opening. Maybe it was Chris coming in to see her. Where was she anyways? She took a couple deep breaths and she started to feel a little bit better, clearer and she opened her eyes a little bit more and saw that she was in a locker room. She wasn't sure if it was Chris's, but she wanted it to be.

The door shut to the side of her and then she was gently lowered down to a couch. This was much more comfortable than the person's arms and she let herself settle into the leather. Her hair was being brushed back again, but it didn't feel like they way Chris did it. Chris liked to tangle his fingers in her hair and tug on it gently, teasing her so she'd wake up so he could kiss her. The ghost of a smile came to Stephanie's face as she thought about that. She loved him so much, more than she thought she would when they started this crazy thing.

"Are you okay, Steph?"

"Yeah, okay," she said, her voice clearer than before.

"I'm so sorry I let that happen to you," he told her, "I'm just so sorry, I should've been in the ring with you, I should've been."

"It's okay," she told him. "Don't worry."

"I'm just so sorry," he said and Stephanie finally realized it was Kurt when she opened her eyes and saw him hovering over her.

"It's fine, no worries," she said, closing her eyes again.

She was startled when she was lifted up into a hug from Kurt. She didn't know what he was doing and it was weird. He hugged her tightly to him and she hand no choice but to kind of wrap her arms around him if she didn't want her arms flailing everywhere. She awkwardly patted him on the back, slowing gaining her bearings back and realizing it was a terrible idea to be in a match with him in the first place.

"I'm okay," she said."

"I'm so glad, I was so worried," Kurt said, running his hands down her cheek.

Stephanie was too out of it to see him coming and all of a sudden Kurt was kissing her. Her eyes widened as she struggled to get away, but he was pushing down on her, his tongue trying to get into her mouth. She didn't let it though, clamping her mouth shut as she pressed her hands against his chest, trying to get him off of her. It seemed like it took minutes for him to pull away, but she knew it couldn't have been. Finally, he pulled away and looked down at her tenderly.

Chris was standing there, jaw dropped, as he watched another man kiss his wife. He didn't even think he could move, but his blood was curdling with anger. He clenched and unclenched his fists, his nails digging into his skin. How dare that man! How dare he put his dirty, filthy lips on his wife! Who the hell did this guy think he was anyways? Could he not take a freaking hint and stay the hell away from his wife? Chris stormed out of his locker room, slamming the door open so hard that it crashed into the wall.

He stalked down the hallways, pushing people out of his way, "I guess your wife really is a slut."

Chris was seeing red at this point and turned harshly towards the speaker of that statement. He was nearly growling with rage and walked predatorily towards Hunter. Hunter just smirked, but before he knew it, he was on the ground because Chris punched the hell out of him, hitting him square in the jaw.

"Shut your ass up!" Chris yelled before turning to leave again. He had another man he wanted to see right now.

He didn't know exactly where Stephanie was, but he had some inkling so he followed his instincts and found the room. He recognized it because it said "Kurt Angle" on the door. He tore the nameplate down and threw it to the ground. He slammed the door open and again, another door slammed loudly into the wall, startling Kurt and Stephanie, who was happy to see Chris finally. Where had he been? She was still wiping her mouth from Kurt's assault.

"You son of a bitch!" Chris yelled, rushing towards Kurt and grabbing him by the straps of his singlet, throwing him up against the wall. "You son of a bitch!"

"Hey, get off of me!"

"You kissed my wife, you ass!" Chris said, getting in his face. "How dare you try to kiss her! I knew you wanted her, I knew you've wanted her in your pants this entire time, you jerk, but you just couldn't respect the fact that she's married."

"Maybe she wanted to kiss me," Kurt challenged, but he was in no position to challenge anyone right now.

"Oh yeah, because she's so alert right now, right, or because she tried to push you away, that tipped you off to her actually wanting it, didn't it?" Chris asked sarcastically. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't kick your ass right now."

"What the--"

"Wrong!" Chris said, punching Kurt and then throwing him down. He went to pummel his sorry ass when Stephanie came rushing over. Chris barging in here and going ballistic had diminished her haze enough to be cognizant of the fact that her husband was possibly going to seriously injure Kurt.

"Chris!" she yelled, grabbing his arm that was reared back to punch Kurt again. "Chris, stop, please."

"What? Why? Do not even tell me you are protecting this son of a bitch," Chris said, turning to his wife.

"No, of course not, but you're going to hurt him and where is that going to leave you? He's not worth it, Chris, he's not worth it," she said, grabbing his arm with her other hand and helping him up. "What use is it going to do now to do this to him when we can have him where we want him?"

"What?"

"Kurt, you and Chris at the next Pay-Per-View, no DQ, cage match," Stephanie said and Chris looked over at her.

"I want the title," Kurt muttered.

"Fine, but you're not going to get it," Stephanie told him. "Come on, Chris, he's really not worth it."

"Are you okay?" he asked, pulling her away from Kurt a little. Chris had given him a look of warning. If he got up, Chris could not be held responsible for his actions. Chris gave Stephanie a softer look, filled with concern.

"A little groggy, but otherwise fine," she told him.

He ran his hand down her face and caught some of her hair in between his fingers and she smiled. "I was really worried about you."

She hugged him, "I'm okay."

They walked out of the room, "Are you sure, do you want to go see the trainer?"

"I think I'm good."

"He kissed you, Stephanie," Chris said, the hard edge returning to his tone. "He kissed you."

"I didn't want him to," she told him. "I really didn't."

"I saw, I can't believe," Chris was clenching his fists again as he spoke. "No, I can't just leave it like this."

"Chris, please, no, I understand now. I completely understand what you're saying. I'll stay away from Kurt, he _is_ bad news. I don't know…part of me thinks that he let Test do that to me, that he let Test hit me so he could play the hero."

"Oh, I'm going to kick his ass right now!" Chris said, that thought just inciting him even more. If he found out this was some elaborate plan by Kurt, he was going to crush Kurt's skull into that steel cage so hard he'd think his skin was being shredded like cheese.

"Chris, no! Save it for your match, okay, just save it for then," Stephanie said, not wanting Chris to send Kurt to the hospital. Kurt seemed like the kind of person who would press charges and she was scared that would happen. "Just save it for when you can really get your hands on him.

It wouldn't be soon enough.


	33. Chapter 33

"Will you look at me?"

Chris broke from his daydream, if it could be called that. He was just thinking of the many different ways in which to pummel Kurt. He was just envisioning a way to slam him so hard he'd go right through the ring. Maybe if he did it from the top of the cage. Maybe he could drag Kurt's bloody carcass to the top of the cage and throw him down, creating a nice dent in the middle of the ring like Mankind had done before.

"What?" he said. He didn't turn to look at her. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, his back hunched over a bit as he stared at the carpet in front of him. It was one of those dizzy patterns, lines going every which way dotted with what the people designing the carpet thought was confetti or some such nonsense. Stephanie was kneeling behind him, beckoning him to her.

"Look at me, you've been staring at nothing for the past half hour or so. It's really starting to become concerning," she told him.

"Sorry," he said, but made no attempt to move. He just continued to stare and continued to plot this match out in his head. He was sure Kurt would get in some offense, he was good, but Chris was better. Kurt was still new to this business, and as such, did more mat-based wrestling. Chris had years and years of experience on him and was exceptionally talented at what he did. He wouldn't be the WWF Champion if he wasn't.

"What is the matter with you?" she asked. "Why won't you look at me?"

"I'm just thinking," he responded, his voice a tinge hard-edged, though he didn't mean to be.

"Oh, are you mad at me?" she asked timidly. "About earlier?"

"I'm not mad at you," he said succinctly.

She ran her hands up his bare back, "Do you wanna…?"

"I'm not in the mood," he told her.

"Oh."

She pulled her hands away from his back and got underneath the covers of the bed. The sheets were stiff, which was to be expected of hotel sheets. She stretched her feet out and just stared at his back. He had never turned her away like that before. Usually, if she want him, he was all over her in a matter of seconds. She'd never been with any guy besides Chris, but when she had offered other activities to past boyfriends they usually jumped at the chance.

Maybe after what happened earlier he wasn't attracted to her anymore. He said he wasn't mad, but surely he had to be mad at her if he didn't even want her to touch him. Maybe he thought she was tainted now or something, or even worse, maybe he thought she wanted Kurt to kiss her. She had been so hazy she hadn't even known what was going on and wished it were Chris. Maybe he considered that cheating. She didn't want anything to do with Kurt.

The tears slipped down her cheeks unwittingly. If Chris left her, she'd be totally alone. Her family hated her right now because she had wrested all the power from them. If Chris left, she wouldn't have anyone left and then for sure Kurt would try to date her and she didn't want him. But the thought of being alone was the one that overwhelmed her. She didn't want to be alone. She needed someone. She needed Chris.

Chris turned his head when he heard soft whimpering from behind him. Stephanie was sitting there, her face wet with tears. They were sliding down her clean skin in intervals, some tears heavier than others. Her eyes were closed tightly, trying to stop the offending tears, but they snuck past her eyelids anyways. Chris quickly scooted over and took her in his arms. He kissed the top of her head and ran his fingers through her damp hair.

"What's wrong, Steph?" he asked softly, breathing into her hair.

"Why don't you want me?" she said, her voice on the verge of sobbing.

"What?"

"You didn't want me."

"Why wouldn't I want you?"

"I asked if you wanted to…you know, and you turned me down and you've never turned me down before," she said, sniffling and trying to sound normal instead of this clogged up mess.

"I'm just thinking," he told her. "This has nothing to do with you."

"You aren't mad at me?" she asked.

"Why would I be mad at you?"

"Because Kurt kissed me and we're married and maybe you don't want me anymore because he kissed me and I didn't stop it immediately, but I didn't know what was going on, I wasn't feeling clear in the head," she said, choking back a sob that was forming in the back of her throat.

"Shh, it's okay," he said, easing her down so they were lying down. He climbed under the covers with her and pulling her into his body, enveloping her in his warmth. "I love you so much, Steph, you have no idea."

"I love you too," she told him, nuzzling against his neck, trying to breathe him in.

"I'm just thinking about how much I want to kick Kurt's ass for what he did to you. That should be considered assault because that's what it is. He assaulted you and I'm going to make him pay for that."

"Oh," she said, quieting down a little. He wasn't going to leave her and she couldn't believe how relieved that made her. She was so attached to Chris now and it was kind of unexpected. She never thought she'd fall in so deep with him.

"Yeah, so stop talking about me not wanting you," he told her, "that's the farthest thing from the truth."

"I'd be alone if you left me," she told him. "I don't want to be alone."

"You're not going to be. I'm just thinking about how Kurt has been trying to get into your pants since he came into this company and I'm going to make sure at the next Pay-Per-View that he knows you aren't up for grabs."

She smiled a little bit, "Good, he deserves it."

"I think so," he said, wrapping his arms around her more firmly. "I'm going to make sure he really gets it.

"Maybe I can have weapons in the ring, you know, chairs and stuff," she said. "That would make it better, right? For you to kick his ass?"

"You're a genius," he told her with a laugh. "That'd just make my job easier. I'd really like to leave him in a pool of his own blood if I can, while preserving my gorgeous face."

She laughed and pulled away from his tight embrace to kiss him. She rested her hand gently against his cheek as he turned them a little so he was dictating the pace. She wrapped her arms around his neck, holding onto him tightly, wanting this badly. He started kissing her jaw, his lips full and his kisses slightly wet. He moved to her cheeks, his warm breath making her tears stick to her skin and dry as a soft film.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love _you_," she whispered back.

"Don't cry over me, okay? I wasn't ignoring you, well, I guess I was, but I wasn't doing it deliberately, just…when I saw Kurt kissing you. I just saw red, you know. I didn't even know how to react, I was just so pissed off. I just wanted to hold onto that anger a little longer so I could carry it with me until the match."

"I'm sure once you see him that anger will show up again," she told him.

"I hope so because I'm going to use it, all of it. I can't believe it…I knew he was bad news, but I didn't think he'd really stoop to that level. I mean, I should've figured it, he's never really made it a secret that he wants you."

"He probably wants to use me," she said.

"I wanted to use you once upon a time," he commented.

"Yeah, but you were different, you were sweet."

"You thought I was a jerk," he chuckled.

"Well I didn't know at the time, you were a little bit of a jerk, but you were really sweet once we got married," Stephanie said. "Besides, I wanted to marry you, I consented to the plan, you know, I didn't just let you."

"That's true."

"I didn't want Kurt to kiss me, that was disgusting. He's not even very good-looking. Even if I wasn't married, I wouldn't want him," Stephanie said. Chris laughed a little, not knowing if she was trying to reassure him or not. He kissed her anyways. He hovered over her, smiling and in love with her.

Someone knocked on the door. The perils of being the boss, everyone came to you with their problems.

"If it's Kurt, I will not be held responsible for my actions," Chris said through gritted teeth.

"If it's him, _I_ won't be held responsible for my actions," she joked. "I'll get in case you are…incapable." She wiggled her eyebrows a little bit and brushed her leg against him. He licked his lips and winked at her.

Stephanie wiped at her face and looked to Chris, pointing at it. He smiled and nodded that it was fine and she pushed her hair behind her ears and left the room to go to the door. She looked through the little hole and saw Trish on the other side. She furrowed her brow and undid the deadbolt. She opened the door a little and stuck her head out.

"Trish, what is it?"

"I was hoping I could talk to you," Trish said, "do you think I could?"

"Um, sure," Stephanie said, opening the door further and letting the woman in. "It's kind of late though. What did you need to talk about?"

Trish sauntered into the hotel room and Stephanie noticed she was wearing a very skimpy tank top and shorts that rode up really high and were very tight. It was a little more than what Stephanie would go walking around in. She self-consciously pulled on the edge of her Jericho t-shirt. Trish looked around and then sank heavily on the couch.

"So, uh, what is it?" Stephanie asked.

"I don't know, do you think I'm fitting in?" she asked, pouting pathetically.

"I don't know. I would say so," Stephanie said.

"Really? Do you think so? I don't know, I mean, I want to make an impact, you know," Trish said, sighing very loudly and glancing at the door to the bedroom. "I hope I wasn't disturbing you, if you and Chris were sleeping or something…"

"No, we weren't asleep," Stephanie told her. "I do think you're making an impact, you're really pushing T&A on the fans and well, they like them. So I think you're doing a good job."

Chris came out of the room and saw Trish sitting on the couch, "Oh hey, Trish, what's up?"

Trish sat up a little straighter and smiled at Chris, "I'm just talking with Stephanie."

"Cool," he said, coming over and pulling Stephanie off the seat and sitting down before pulling her into his lap. "It was cold in there without you."

"I'm doing business," she told him.

"It's fine, he can stay," Trish said sweetly, placing her hands on her knees. "I don't mind, maybe he can help too."

"Help with what?" he asked, leaning his head on Stephanie's shoulder. "What's going on?"

"I'm not sure I'm making an impact. You are like the king of making impacts, your thing when you came into the company, legendary and then this whole marrying Stephanie business, brilliant."

"Thanks," Chris beamed. "Did you hear that? Legendary."

"Oh get off your high horse," Stephanie joked. "You're doing fine, Trish, I wouldn't worry about anything. You're doing a great job here. I definitely think you're bringing in viewers."

"Great, I'm so glad, I would hate to be bad at what I do, maybe I should take lessons from someone, maybe you, Chris," Trish giggled.

Chris had been leaning his head against Stephanie's back. The adrenaline was draining out of him slowly and he was getting exhausted. He popped his head up, "You're fine, Trish, don't worry about it."

"Oh, well, okay," Trish said, getting up and stretching her arms over her head. "Well, thanks for listening, guys, I really appreciate it. I just want to be good here."

"You are, thanks, goodnight," Stephanie said escorting him out. She walked back into the room and crossed her arms.

Chris laughed, "Yeah, that was pretty obvious."

"I'm going to kick her ass if she tries anything."

"Now you know how I feel."


	34. Chapter 34

"Stephanie?"

Stephanie looked up and saw her brother in the doorway. She straightened a little. Shane wouldn't pull anything. He would have no idea where Chris was and if he tried to pull anything, Chris could walk in and beat him down. She just wanted to appear confident to him. She took a deep breath and steeled herself for an onslaught from him about how she had taken over without so much as consulting anyone in her family.

"Shane," she said, returning the favor.

Shane cleared his throat a little, "Do you think we could talk?"

"Is this about business?" she asked, tilting her head and trying to read him. Maybe her father sent him here as his minion and he was going to try and declare war on her and take back the company.

"Sort of."

"Did Dad send you here?" she wondered suspiciously. She was trying to cover all her bases with this conversation. She wasn't going to allow herself to be blindsided. She believed herself to be doing a great job with the show. Chris helped her out a lot and she had a very competent staff, but she felt like most of the responsibility fell on her to prove herself worthy of the position. Her father and brother never seemed to believe in her and she was proving them wrong, or so she hoped.

"No, he didn't, I'm coming here of my own volition, so don't worry about an attack or anything," Shane said, reading his sister well.

Stephanie relaxed a little, but still remained rigid until she knew what her brother wanted with her. "Okay, so what did you want then?"

"Don't you think this whole thing is silly, _banning_ me and Mom and Dad from the company. We know what we're doing, Stephanie. We're not idiots."

"I never said you were, besides, you're still shareholders, so it's not like you guys are hurting or anything," Stephanie pointed out. "You don't need money, I'm sure."

"No, I don't need the money, but I've worked here my entire life and I would like to continue to do so in the future."

"You're asking for a job?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Well this could be an interesting venture. She wondered if her brother would mind starting out on the ring crew. She could get him a sweet position if he wanted and if he worked hard enough, he could move up in the company. She smirked to herself as she pictured Shane having to clean toilets or something.

"I'm asking you to let us back in," Shane told her. "I mean, I'm not speaking directly for Mom or Dad, but I know they want you to let them back in too."

"Why should I? Things are going fine without any of you. I've got things completely in control. The board of directors is happy, the wrestlers are pretty happy, save for some of the more cantankerous ones. Things are going smoothly."

"That's great, I'm proud of you, but--"

"Proud of me?" she scoffed. She shook her head a little at the phrase.

"Yeah, I am," he said.

"Don't say something like that," she told him. "When I was under your thumb and Dad's thumb, that's when you were 'proud' of me. When I was going to do what you want, marry who you wanted, that's what made you proud of me. I don't think you guys even really knew me at all."

"Obviously we didn't," Shane said, looking around. "I didn't really think you were capable of taking the company right out from under us. I also didn't think you were capable of marrying Chris like you did, pulling the rug out from under us."

"Well, maybe if you had bothered to ask."

"Look, I know that your marriage to Chris was to get back at us. I know it was mutually beneficial for the both of you. I know that he wanted the title, I mean, I think it was pretty obvious with him getting the title so quickly."

"He earned that."

"Stephanie, come on, I'm your brother, you don't have to lie to me. I know what's going on with you two. If you didn't want to marry Test, you should've just not married him, you didn't have to go prove whatever you were proving by marrying Chris."

"I love Chris," she told him seriously, staring him right in the face, "I'm _in love_ with Chris."

"You are?"

"Yes, I love my husband," Stephanie told her brother. "If you don't believe me, you can just get the hell out right now."

"Sorry," he said, holding his hands up. "I just find that…well, strange, I don't know. I thought you hated him or something."

"Well, I don't."

"Sorry," he said, "but come on, you have to admit it's weird that you go from hating him or seeming to hate him to being married to him and being in love with him."

"I was wrong about him, that's all," Stephanie said. "I got to know him and I fell in love with him. Maybe if you paid any attention to me at all, you would've seen that I actually liked him a lot."

She was lying, she knew, but she just didn't like people thinking she didn't love her husband. She loved Chris so much it threatened to consume her most of the time. He was her everything now and she didn't like thinking back to their cold beginning. Yes, she had married him for money, but it was different now. Now they were in love and she wanted to be with him and she was fairly positive he wanted to be with her so why should people be led to believe otherwise?

"Okay, okay, sorry," Shane said, "we just want to come back. I know Mom is dying to mend fences with you. I know she like, wants to talk married life to you or something. So what do you say?"

"I'll think about it."

"Stephanie?"

"Look, I don't know if you're being completely truthful or only partially truthful with me, so give me some time to think it over and then I'll get back to you. At the very least I think we can come to some sort of compromise about the job situation. I think that it would be okay for the three of you to retain some of your former duties."

Shane thought she was being unreasonable and was about to say so when Chris walked into her office. He didn't bother to knock and Shane didn't know why, but he found that completely fascinating. He just let himself inside like he owned the place. Chris looked at Shane in surprise, but didn't say anything. He just walked over to Stephanie's desk and leaned down to kiss her. It was different in that Chris kept his eyes open the entire time and leaned a little, looking at Shane distrustfully.

"Hey, Shane," Chris said as he pulled away. Stephanie was in a little daze from Chris's kiss and didn't immediately respond as to why Shane was even here.

"Hey," Shane said uncomfortably.

"Shane was just here to discuss business and stuff."

"And I've pretty much said my piece, so thanks for listening Stephanie," he said, standing up and nodding at his sister and her husband. Once he was gone, Chris went over and sat in the chair Shane had just been in, leaning his feet up on Stephanie's desk.

"What was that about?"

"He wanted me to reconsider this entire thing and give their jobs back, which means give them the power. They know they can probably get their jobs back pretty easily without even asking her. They were the ones in this self-imposed exile or whatever. They just wanted to control everything again, just like always. She never got any say in what happened and she had grown tired of that.

"And?"

"I don't know, I mean, they are my family on the one hand, but on the other hand, they don't get me and they probably never will. I'm more like them than they are willing to admit and it bugs them because they probably know if I wanted, I could be better than them all combined."

"Wow, the ego in this room just shot up a lot," Chris chuckled.

Stephanie blushed, "I didn't mean it to come across like that."

"It didn't, it's cool, I like this side of you," he told her affectionately and looked at her like he just wanted to take her and hug her forever. She loved that open look of warmness that he gave her. It just made her want to cuddle him and let their bodies meld together.

"Thanks," she said, still embarrassed.

Chris found it endearing, "You're beautiful."

"Stop," she blushed even further, her cheeks burning turning into her whole face burning. "Where have you been?"

"Nowhere," he told her. "Just around, warming up for later."

He was lying to her and he didn't feel totally comfortable with the concept, but he didn't want to tell her what had just happened. Stephanie was really sensitive about their relationship and he didn't want to upset her. He hadn't done anything. He had just gone to see Kurt and it had not ended well. If Kurt was smart he would keep the incident to himself, but he probably wasn't going to be smart. Maybe he should tell her. What could it hurt?

"I got in a fight with Kurt," he confessed.

"What?"

"Just what I said."

"Chris, you're not supposed to touch him until your match," Stephanie chastised.

"I know, but I didn't want to. I mean, you haven't officially added that stipulation yet. You're going to do that later tonight so I thought I'd get some licks in right now," he grinned. "It felt good."

"You aren't supposed to get in fights with him. Chris," she whined.

"He deserved it. I mean, I can wait _now_, but I just couldn't let him totally off the hook for kissing you. What kind of man doesn't defend his wife like that? I know you didn't like or want the kiss so I'm going to have to do _something_."

"I know, I just wish you could've waited."

"Well I couldn't."

"You have to have a little self-restraint," she told him sternly.

"I have plenty of self-restraint, thank you very much," he said, folding his arms in front of him. "But you couldn't honestly expect me to wait that long. I barely touched him, the pansy went down with one good punch. I guess his amateur wrestling skills can't help him win a real fight."

"Chris!"

"What?"

"We are trying to set an example here and if you're going around beating guys up at random--"

"Random? Stephanie, the man kissed you. I can't just let that go. Look, I know we're still getting to know each other or whatever, but this is bull. I'm not the type of guy who will totally let this go. You're my wife, you're my _wife_ and with that comes a lot of weight, you know."

"Yes, but you got mad at him last week and so you should've just let it go today. You have a huge match with him anyways. It's not a huge deal right now."

"Not a huge deal. I just…I don't get you, Stephanie. Maybe you haven't been paying attention, but this guy has been after you from the second he came into this company. He's been constantly after you and I've had to stand back and watch you be naïve about it and it's frustrating, let me tell you."

"Like I haven't noticed Trish being all over _you_, while you haven't exactly been discouraging, have you, Chris Jericho?"

"I haven't been inviting her to my bedroom or anything. I don't invite her attention, believe me," Chris scoffed. "There's no way I'd want her."

"So what? You haven't discouraged her either."

"You haven't discouraged Kurt."

"I didn't want him kissing me."

"Neither did I, so he had to pay."

"You'll make him pay later, you didn't have to go off the handle. You're not supposed to act like you are in charge or there will be unrest."

"He kissed you! It was retaliation."

"We can't afford retaliation."

Chris groaned and stood up. "Look, when you figure out that I'm right, come find me, until then, don't talk to me."

"Fine!"

"Fine!"


	35. Chapter 35

A/N: Thank you for those who have reviewed this one, 200 reviews is so freaking awesome. Sorry for the long break between updates. I have so many stories some get a little lost, but I'll try and be better. If you read this, please leave a review, they really do make my day and I love them all. Thanks. :)

* * *

It was just a fight, that's all. It was just a tiny fight and they would be fine. Right? They'd never really fought before. They'd been in a business partnership before and now they were married so it was different, but they'd never fought. They had the same goals and now they were fighting, like an honest-to-goodness fight. But it would blow over, it had to. But what if it didn't? She didn't know about his temperament in times like these. Maybe he was the kind of person who held an incredible long grudge.

"Well, if it isn't the skankiest woman on the entire roster," Hunter said as he spied Stephanie wandering aimlessly down the hallway. "And that's a hard title to win too, what with divas pretty much being sluts. But you, you Stephanie McMahon, you take the cake. Maybe we should give you a prize, a new mattress, maybe, since you've obviously worn the other one out."

She wasn't in the mood for this, "Leave me alone," she said, her tone low and standoffish. She just hoped, for once, that he got the point and left her alone. But she would never be so lucky because Hunter was on the prowl tonight.

"What's the matter? Rates are down tonight?" he mocked.

"I'm not the whore you think I am."

"Well, bed-hopping from Test to Chris, what's a guy to think, Stephanie? Who do you have next on your list? Huh? Kurt, it's Kurt, isn't it? I knew there was something going with you and the Olympic hero. Wonder if you'll get a gold medal for getting on your knees and--"

"Shut up!" she told him. "You don't know anything about me."

"I know you're a skanky whore, what more is there?" he asked. "Not to mention the fact that you're showing clear favoritism towards your husband by letting him have the title. How much did he have to pay for that? Did he just leave you a large tip?"

"My husband is going to kick your ass," Stephanie said. "I'm booking a match for you tonight. Yeah, that's right, you heard me, I'm booking a match, it'll be you and Chris, no DQ, how do you like that?"

"I like that very much," Hunter said, "but why don't we sweeten the deal?"

"What do you mean?" Stephanie asked.

"I mean, why don't you put the title on the line? If your _husband_ is as good as he thinks he is and as good as you _say_ he is, then he should have no problem putting it up for grabs. Or is he not good enough to go against me?"

"He's not afraid of you," Stephanie said, hands on hips as she glared at him. Chris could beat anyone. He really was very underestimated by everyone around here. Just because he wasn't 6'7 and 280 pounds of chiseled muscle people thought he would be weak in the ring. She'd been watching some of Chris's older matches and she certainly watched his newer ones and people needed to stop thinking that he was some weakling.

"He should be, tell me, when he was in WCW, how many times did he win the WCW Championship?"

"He didn't get the chance there. He's extremely talented and worthy of the WWF championship. WCW didn't appreciate him."

"Or maybe he really isn't good enough and he should just go after…oh, I don't know, the Light Heavyweight championship or something more his speed."

"He's going to kick your ass."

"I'd like to see him try…unless you're going to go sleep with the referee so he'll call it in your favor," Hunter chuckled.

Stephanie jaw set tightly. She should just fire him, but they were still in this ratings war with WCW and they couldn't afford to lose someone who was popular with the fans. Well, he wasn't _that_ popular actually, but still, he'd be a major coup for WCW and if she let him go, she could just see her father swooping in and stealing the company from her again. She was the one in charge and this was the kind of thing she would have to deal with now. She would have to make the big decisions.

"Fine, the title will be on the line."

Hunter smirked at her, probably thinking he had this in the bag. He was in for a big surprise. "Great, nice doing business with you, skank."

Stephanie wanted to hiss at him, but she had to go tell Chris about the match tonight. She knew he was probably going to be unhappy with this match, but she'd been painted into a corner. She couldn't just out and out refuse Hunter's request or it would just egg him on more. She hated the things he called her. She was not a skank or a slut or a whore. She'd been a virgin until Chris. She'd never been with another man besides Chris so how could she be a slut? If Hunter only knew, but he only saw what was on the outside and sure, she dressed a little more…provocatively now, but it wasn't anything slutty like most of the divas wore or anything. She'd never exposed herself. Besides, she wanted to get the women more into wrestling around here rather than just being eye candy.

"Stephanie?"

She turned to her side and saw she had just walked right past Chris without even acknowledging him. She thought she caught some hurt in his eyes, maybe he thought she was ignoring him, but she wasn't; she just hadn't seen him. She turned around and walked back towards him, giving him a tentative smile. He gave her a small smile back, but it was strained, she could tell. She didn't like it like this. She didn't like it like this at all.

"Hey."

"Hey," he returned, looking down a bit. "You looked intense."

"I was thinking."

He pat the spot next to him, "Want to talk about it?"

"I was just thinking about us and this fight, us fighting. I know we haven't been together long, but we haven't fought and it felt weird. I guess every married couple goes through it though, you know, that first fight."

"I would think so. I don't think anyone's marriage is perfect, no matter how much some people project that into the world. I think there needs to be a balance, keep you on your toes, you know. We haven't really fought and I guess we needed to so we could keep the balance."

"I still didn't like it, I don't like it actually, since we're still in the fight, I guess, right?" she asked, looking over at him, hoping he would make this simpler for her. She had no experience at this kind of thing. Of course, neither did he as this was the first marriage for both of them. They couldn't just break up over a fight, it was different now. But then, they'd never dated so everything was new and confusing.

"Well, once we get over it, I expect the making up will be epic," he said as he leaned over towards her, kissing the spot just below her ear. She smiled in relief.

"I thought you might be one of those guys that just like, does not want to talk and hold onto your anger forever and would hate me and dump me and never want to be with me…"

Chris laughed, "I'm not that kind of guy. Look, I understand where you're coming from, you're trying to maintain an image and it's important that I maintain a certain image as well, being your husband, but I think you have to see it from my perspective too."

She thought for a moment, wondering if she could understand his side. Trish had been pretty blatant around Chris as of late and it bothered her. If Trish had kissed Chris, how would she have felt? Well, she would've wanted to kick her in the shins and then rip her probably bleached blonde hair out of her head. She was a bit startled by the intensity of her anger. Was this how Chris felt when thinking about what Kurt had done? God, how could she blame him for his reaction then?

"I think I do understand. It wasn't about what was going on in the ring, it was solely because you felt like he was doing something to me," she said slowly, waiting for him to either affirm or deny that was how he felt.

"Pretty much," he said and she breathed again.

"Good."

"I just couldn't control it. I see him and I think about him and how he took advantage of you, how he's wanted to take advantage of you since he met you and it just makes me so mad."

"I know…um, you might be mad at me again," she told him, twisting her mouth to the side.

Chris looked at her sharply, "What do you mean? What happened? If Kurt kissed you again, I'm going to bash his brains in, clause or no clause."

"Nothing to do with him…it's Hunter, you know, Triple H," she said, as if he could forget that overgrown behemoth of a man. "He…I don't know what it is he has against me. I don't know why he thinks it's okay to call me the names he does."

"He doesn't like your father and by extension you, so he thinks it's okay to call you horrible names," Chris said, then his eyes were looking off, somewhere past her shoulder, but his eyes were unfocused so she knew he wasn't looking at anything in front of him, but rather looking off to something, maybe something he saw in his mind's eye.

"Yeah, he was doing it again. He thinks it's funny or something, like…if he only knew how I really was. If he only knew how inexperienced I am, how prude I guess I was."

"You weren't…well, you're not a prude now," he winked. "What did he say though, exactly, or as clearly as you remember?"

"He was just being a jerk, but I guess I got kind of…mad," she said. "He was talking about you too and I was just mad. He just makes me so mad, like nobody has ever made me mad before. I don't like him talking about you like that. I don't like him talking about you at all. It's like how dare he. Anyways, I kind of made a match between you tonight."

"What?"

"Yeah and it's kind of no DQ," she added.

"No DQ, oh God, he's going to bring DX out there…"

"And kind of…maybe, sort of for the title," she finished.

"No DQ for the title, _tonight_? Stephanie, oh my God," Chris said.

"But wait, yeah, I can say no DQ, but everyone is banned from ringside, DX included, that way it's just you and him, I can do that, I'll do that," she said, jumping off the spot she was sitting in and standing in front of him. "I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking, I was mad…I'm sorry."

"Don't worry," Chris said, "I'll beat him either way."

"I'm going to tell him DX is banned from ringside," she said, rushing off before he could get a word in edgewise. She knew the match would be fairer that way and she was about fair, not about giving her husband the edge necessarily. It was still a no DQ match, which meant that Chris could still get hurt. But at least this way it wouldn't turn into a handicap match.

What he didn't plan on was Kurt coming up to her backstage while she was watching the match. He stood next to her and she hardly even noticed because her eyes were flitting between the monitor showing the match and DX, the whole of which was standing just off to the side, probably waiting for her attention to wane so they could go out there and team up to beat on Chris.

"Stephanie."

She turned her head quickly towards him, unbelieving that he would come up to her now. What she didn't know at the moment was that the Titantron had switched from coverage of the match to coverage of her standing back there and Kurt coming up to her. Chris heard her voice ringing out through the arena as he dislodged the ring steps, ready to hurl them at Hunter. He stopped what he was doing and looked to her. That moment saw him caught off guard and Hunter shove the ring steps into his head. He felt back, the steps clattering next to him and he was seeing stars dancing in front of his eyes, pinpricks of light.

"What are you doing here?" she asked him roughly.

"I just wanted to talk to you," he said, turning her to face him. But she'd just seen what happened to Chris and her eyes were riveted to the screen, urging Chris to get up. Chris was pulling himself to his feet, crawling towards the ring. He was still watching the Titantron though.

Kurt reached up and turned Stephanie's face towards him. She pulled away brusquely, "Stop it, I'm watching my _husband_."

"I just wanted to apologize."

"Stop," Stephanie said, turning away again.

"You just don't understand, I like you," Kurt said, rubbing his hand over her arm. She pulled away again.

"If you don't leave me alone, I'm going to kick you," Stephanie told him. Chris was still watching, but Hunter was preparing. He was under the ring at the moment and he was getting his favorite weapon of choice, his sledgehammer. Stephanie was trying to get away from Kurt and he was trying to lean in and kiss her. Chris was seeing red. He was going to kill Kurt. He was going to strangle him with his bare hands.

In that moment, the match meant nothing to him nor did the title. Nothing mattered except that bastard trying to kiss his wife _again_. He was going to take such pleasure in cutting down Kurt Angle. Hunter had just thrown the sledgehammer into the ring and he was climbing in now, grabbing it in his hands, a smirk played on his face. This was going to be too easy and he hadn't even asked for Kurt's help.

Stephanie looked again and saw Hunter, "Chris, no!"

Chris suddenly looked behind him and just got out of the way of the sledgehammer. Hunter was furious and he stalked after Chris. He took another swing, but as he was doing so, Chris speared Hunter by the legs. Hunter went down and lost the grip he had on the sledgehammer. Chris grabbed it and hit the handle against Hunter's head before throwing it out of the ring. Chris pulled Hunter towards the middle of the ring and hit his Lionsault on him. Chris grabbed his middle from the move and went to cover up Hunter, but he only got a two and he groaned. He looked again to the screen and Stephanie wasn't on it anymore.

"Kurt, you better leave me the hell alone, I don't want anything to do with you," she warned him.

"I just…I'm so attracted to you and I can't help it, I didn't mean to kiss you and I just wanted to apologize to you, I really did."

Chris needed to get back to her, he didn't know what was going on. He went and grabbed the title back to the ring and he hit Hunter in the head. The man went down and Chris scrambled to cover him. This time he got the 1-2-3 and before the referee got his hand up in victory, Chris had grabbed his title and raced backstage. Kurt was still there, but upon seeing Chris, he ran away like the coward he was.

"Did he kiss you?" Chris panted.

"No, he didn't, he didn't do anything."

"Doesn't matter, that guy is dead."


	36. Chapter 36

A/N: Hope you like the chapter. :)

* * *

Chris was leaving no stone unturned, or better phrase, no locker room unsearched.

The coward Kurt Angle had bolted after Chris had come back from his match with Hunter. Maybe he thought by going up to Stephanie while he had been in a match would distract him from his match and then he'd lose and then Kurt wouldn't have to face him. It'd definitely be something that Kurt would do, the slimy, little sleazeball that he was. Chris knew he was a scumbag and he hated that he was using Stephanie in this little game.

"Chris..."

Stephanie was trailing after him. Occasionally he would hear her voice as she tried to keep up, but he was always faster than she was. She'd never seen the look on his face before and it didn't necessarily scare her, but it startled her. The depths of his anger were something he'd never shown her, something she'd never experienced. She felt like he could fly off the handle at any moment and she didn't want to see that happen. He and Kurt weren't supposed to fight before their big match and she didn't want Chris to do something stupid.

He'd already been arrested once because a man in her life despised him. What Andrew had done was despicable, but she feared that Kurt would do something even worse. It just seemed like Kurt had no scruples whatsoever and if that was the case, then he would not hesitate to do something to Chris and she didn't want anything to happen to him. Chris also had the habit of being antagonistic, which was not a great quality to have when a lot of people were gunning for him because he was the champion.

"Chris!" she repeated, louder this time. "Will you please slow down?"

"No," he called over his shoulder and she had to jog faster to try and catch up with him. He was an exceptionally fast walker when he wanted to be because he wasn't running, just walking quickly.

"Chris, please!" she pleaded with him.

Chris was throwing open doors to locker rooms, showing no regard for anyone that might be in them. Heaven help any diva who was changing because Chris was about to get an eyeful, not that he cared because he wasn't looking to be a peeping tom or anything. Chris should've probably checked each other locker room more thoroughly, but in his anger, he was unable to think properly and so he just threw a door open, nearly taking them off their hinges and if Chris didn't see Kurt in his line of vision, he moved on.

"I'm not stopping until I find that stupid bastard," Chris growled.

Stephanie sighed and started to run. She was wearing heels so her run wasn't very effective and she feared that she would fall and break her ankle or something and wouldn't that just be a wonderful thing to happen in front of everyone. Making a quick decision, she stopped, pulled off her shoes and then sprinted after Chris in her bare feet, the floor cold and hard beneath her feet. Stephanie finally caught up to him and grabbed his right arm, tugging on it hard. Chris nearly broke free, but softened a little and turned towards Stephanie.

"What?" he asked.

"Chris, please, stop this," she told him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"I know what I'm doing. I'm going to find Kurt Angle and I'm going to show him why the hell he should stay away from you. If he doesn't get it after this, then I'll just have to show him again and again."

"By beating him up?"

"I prefer to think of it as learning his lesson," Chris said darkly.

"This is insane!" she told him. "You guys have a match, you can wait for that. What are you going to do right now? Are you going to go up to him and just punch him in the face? Like that will solve anything? He didn't pull anything on me, no kisses and such."

"Don't try to defend him."

Stephanie glared at him. "Do you think that's honestly what I'm doing here? Defending him? I'm not defending him, trust me, I'd have no reason to defend him. All I'm doing is assuring that you won't get into trouble. You guys are supposed to keep away from each other before the match, that was agreed upon. This would be in violation of that."

"I don't give a damn," he told her. "You and I own this goddamn company and if I want to make sure a talent knows his place, I'm damn sure going to do that, who cares about something agreed upon. You'd think when you married me, it would be _agreed upon_ by everyone that you are off the market, but that asshole seems to think you can be his own personal playground."

"Do you see me wagging my tail after him?" Stephanie asked. "Do you see me actually wanting his advances? I can certainly take care of him myself, you know."

She looked defiant in that moment and Chris admired her for it. He was just so angry that someone could have such a blatant disregard for something important in Chris's life. He and Stephanie were _married_. Sure, when she had been engaged to Andrew, he hadn't exactly been a great guy and had even sort of, kind of, maybe tried to seduce her away from him, but that was just engaged, it was not married. Married was bigger, it was permanent and he certainly wanted what he had with Stephanie to be permanent and having this guy come in and just show disrespect towards him was infuriating.

He had to admire her though, with her defiance. She knew she didn't want any of this and instead of letting him do what he wanted, she was fighting him and telling him she could take care of herself. The only problem was that her problems became _their_ problems. "I know you can take care of yourself, but this thing we have here, it's a partnership and I love you and when I see another guy hitting on you, touching you like he does...it makes me want to rip a door off the hinges."

"I know it does," she said, running her hand down his cheek. He was still sweaty from his match and she pulled her hand away and made a face. Chris laughed and took her hand and kissed the palm. "You're calm," she mused.

"You have that ability," Chris said, but then his eyes blazed, "Stephanie, what he did to you, what he's been _doing_ to you, I can't let it slide. I think about him and it's like fire. Like I have to get at him and tear him apart because I'm so angry at what he's doing."

"I know, that's why we have the match."

"I can't wait for the match. I just...one punch to the jaw should really do it. This is beyond the match anyways. The match is just that, a match. It'll feel like just a match between two people, but if I fight him now, I don't know, I take the control back, I guess. It's just so much more personal if I legit fight him."

"So just put that extra effort in the ring."

"How do you do this to me?"

"Do what to you?" she asked, not understanding his question.

"Make me all calm and not angry when I'm with you?" he asked. She just had that affect on him. He could be in his angriest state and she'd smile at him and talk to him in that calm voice she used, the one she didn't use for business, and suddenly, it was like his anger evaporated into the atmosphere and he was just standing there. No woman had had that affect on him, but he hadn't loved any woman like he loved Stephanie. Even without trying, she knew how to change his mood.

"I don't know," she shrugged. She reached out and rubbed his shoulders a little and he closed his eyes. "I guess I just know you." He kept his eyes closed as she continued to rub his shoulders, right there in the hallway and he could feel her getting closer and closer, her arms moving farther and farther back and then banding around his neck altogether. Then he felt a kiss on his jaw and then another and another until she was kissing the corner of his mouth. He moved his head a little and caught her lips against his.

"I love you," he mumbled against her lips.

"I love you too," she mumbled back before pulling away and laughing, "You're all sweaty."

"I did just have a grueling match," he pointed out as he opened his eyes to see her face mere inches away from him. "I tend to be sweaty after those."

"You were amazing out there. Hunter was thrown for a loop."

"Thanks," he said simply forgoing his usual braggart attitude.

"Are you going to still go looking for Kurt?"

"I guess not," he said, defeated. She grinned at him and he kissed her again. "You know, sometimes I'm not too fond of this hold you have over me. You have way too much power in this relationship, it's kind of scary."

"Womanly wiles," she joked.

"Yeah, and apparently I'm a sucker for them."

"Will you wait to get Kurt until your match?"

"I'll try, but I make no promises. The guy just knows how to push my buttons."

"He'll talk crap to you during his match, try not to lose focus and listen to him, whatever he says, it won't be true, just remember that."

"I know, I'm prepared for it."

"Oh yeah, sure, because this whole storming off thing is super prepared," she said sarcastically, then pulled away. "Yuck, I forgot you were all sweaty."

"I need a shower."

"Come on, I'll walk you to your locker room," she said, holding his hand. They turned around and headed towards his locker room.

"Maybe you can join me in the shower," he suggested lecherously and she shook her head and he pouted.

"Chris, hey," Trish said as she passed and then stopped to fall into step next to him. Stephanie looked over at her. She was wearing a top that was so tight her breasts threatened to just break the shirt open and she was wearing hot pants to boot. "You were great out there, that match was _amazing_."

"Thanks," Chris said.

"You know, I've been really thinking about this whole, learning to wrestle business and since you're the champion and the best in the business, I'm not just saying that, I really think you are, I was hoping that you would want to train me, not like show me a move here or there, but actually train me."

"Wow..." Chris didn't know what to say to that and with his wife now gripping his hand so tightly that she might break skin with her fingernails, he knew the next words out of his mouth were critical. Stephanie, for her part, was shooting bullets, not even daggers, at Trish. She was _right here_ and Trish was not caring, what with her little shorts and her boob top.

"I just want to be the best and to be the best, you have to go to the best, right?" Trish asked and she stuck her chest out a little and Chris was trying not to look at them even though she was practically making it so he wouldn't be able to see anything else.

"Well, uh, thanks for thinking I'm the best, for one," he said.

"I can't help but notice."

And he couldn't help but notice that her top button had popped open and she was now showing even more cleavage. "Yeah, but I don't really train people, I mean, with my schedule I've barely got time to eat, you know."

"Oh," she said, obviously disappointed. "Can you think about it and get back to me? Thanks, see you later, Chris." She didn't even mention Stephanie or acknowledge her presence at all. She walked away, swishing her hips from side to side.

"Did you see that?" Stephanie asked. "Did you see how she _ignored_ me like I didn't exist?"

"Yeah, I saw," Chris said.

"Can you believe her? I can't believe her. What with her stupid outfit and her complimenting and...I could rip her hair out."

"Okay, Chris," Chris said.

"What?"

"Now who's the irrational one?"

"I don't have a match with her, I can rip her hair out if I want," she said as they continued to walk. "Do you like breast implants?"

Well this was a landmine waiting to explode. "Excuse me?"

"Her boobs, did you like them that big? Do you like breast implants because if those are real than I'm the Queen of England."

"No," Chris said, shaking his head. Then he sighed, "Actually, I do kind of have a thing for them."

"Oh," Stephanie said, looking down at her own chest. It wasn't like she was exactly horrible endowed in that department, she wasn't, but they were hardly what you'd call a rack.

"I don't want you to have them though," Chris told her and she could tell he was sincere.

"You don't?"

"One, I don't want you to have unnecessary surgery. My heart couldn't take thinking of you going under the knife. Two, and most important of all, I think you're beautiful as you are," he told her, then leaned in, "Plus, I really do like your boobs."

"Chris!" she giggled, blushing furiously, the heat going all the way up to her ears. "We're in public!"

"I whispered," he told her. "Everything about you, Steph, is something I like and the stuff I don't like, I can live with. And everything I don't know yet, I'm sure that I'll come to love. I don't want you to change."

"Thanks," she said. "So can I still rip Trish's hair out?"

"Here, why don't we cook a little something up?"

"What do you have in mind?"

"I'm thinking mixed tag."

"Mixed tag?"

"Me and you against Kurt and Trish, what do you say?"

"But...we just talked about..."

"It'd be a tag match, not a real one, come on, isn't it a good idea, don't you want to do it? Think about it, you could take on Trish without repercussion. You're better than she is and I can show _you_ some moves. So come on, you know you want to. Do you want to make the match?"

"Only if you show me how to do the Walls of Jericho."

"You're on."


	37. Chapter 37

"I'm ready."

Chris licked his lips a little, "You look so hot right now."

"Chris, focus," Stephanie laughed as she circled in front of him. "We're not here for you to tell me how hot I am."

"But it goes without saying, you know," Chris told her. "Why did you have to wear something like that? I thought that you were just going to be in some athletic pants and a t-shirt, I didn't know you were going to dress like that."

"Like what?" Stephanie asked, looking down at her outfit. She'd had some wrestling outfits made for her. Right now she was wearing a kind of romper with shorts and a v-neck collar and no sleeves. Chris had been staring at her intently since she'd walked into the gym. They were currently at the wrestling facility in Titan Towers, down below the ground floor where the gym was. Chris didn't want to teach Stephanie somewhere unsafe so they were staying in Connecticut for the week.

She felt a little uncomfortable being so close to her family and not seeing them. But with all the bad blood boiling right now, she didn't think meeting up with them would be the greatest idea. She just couldn't picture going to a family dinner and not having it erupt into yelling and craziness and in-fighting. Someday, maybe it would change, but for now, this was how it had to be and she wasn't exactly sorry about it. So long she'd lived under her family's thumb and she was loving the freedom she had now.

"Like _that_," Chris said, gesturing towards her outfit. "That barely covers anything."

"Are you kidding me?" she asked. "Chris, everything is covered, it's not like I have nothing on or I'm topless or something."

She laughed when he shook his head. "You just look really beautiful is all."

She blushed a little, "Thanks, but that's not the look I was going for. I was just meeting with Ally about wrestling gear and we kind of came up with this one and I liked it and she whipped it right up for me. I thought I'd get used to wrestling in it."

"Yeah, but did you take into consideration that your husband would find you hot in it?" he asked. Then he added, "Great, now everyone who watches is going to think that you're hot too and I'm going to have competition coming at me from all sides."

"Yeah right," she scoffed. "You've seen the girls we work with, I'm the last on the list…well, okay, not true, Chyna is the last on the list, but I'm second to last. Why want me when there are other, prettier girls to be had?"

"Because you're the prettiest," Chris said, winking at her. He was always telling her she was pretty and it always made a blush rise to her cheeks. It's not that she thought herself an ugly cow or anything, she just didn't think she was the gorgeous person Chris seemed to see her as. But when he looked at her, when he told her those things, she believed him because his words seemed so sincere.

"Stop," she responded with a slight giggle. "You're making me blush."

"Even cuter that you don't realize how pretty you are," Chris said.

"Chris, okay, we've had our fun, now I want to start training. When we challenge Trish and Kurt, I want to be prepared to go out there. I want Trish to think that she can just hop in the ring and push me or something and I'll fall down. But I won't fall down and then I'll kick her and pull her hair and throw her out of the ring and then I'll ram her into the ring steps and then you can throw her back in the ring for me and I'll do a Lionsault."

"Okay, babe, you had me until Lionsault. We've got a week to get you trained enough to where you can beat Trish. While that's more than enough time because she doesn't know how to wrestle, I don't think it's enough time to teach you had to do complicated moves like that."

"I took gymnastics as a kid, you know," she said haughtily, hands on hips.

"Yeah, I know, isn't that how you hurt your knee?" he said, glancing down at her knee, which had a brace on it so she wouldn't get injured. Stephanie cursed the shots she was wearing for exposing her weakness.

"Yeah, but that was a long time ago, I'm completely healed from it," Stephanie told him. "I bet that if you taught me I could do it just fine."

"No," he said, "but come on, lock up with me."

Stephanie smiled, "Can do, Teach."

Chris laughed as Stephanie came forward and they locked arms. She tried to smile flirtily at him, but he seemed to change once their arms locked. This wasn't time for flirting and sweetness, Chris looked incredibly determined. This must be what he was like in the ring and if it was really what he was like, no wonder he was the champion and held onto the belt, he looked so fierce. This momentary lapse in her thinking allowed Chris to get her in a headlock and she tried to break free, but Chris had a firm grip on her.

"Chris!" she screamed, trying to get him to let go as she struggled against him.

"This isn't going to make me let you go," Chris said.

"Yeah, but I doubt Trish is going to be able to choke me half to death," she wheezed out.

Chris realized he was holding her like he would hold one of his own opponents and quickly let go of her. She gulped in some air and straightened up. "I'm so sorry, Steph. I didn't mean to hold you so hard, I guess I forgot my own strength there for a moment."

"You must have," she said, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm okay."

"You sure?" he asked, worried that he might have actually hurt her with a stupid move like a headlock.

"Yeah, so if _she_ had me in the headlock, how would I get out?" Stephanie said.

"Well, you're stronger than she is, so you could push her away and into the ropes. She'll probably bounce back and then you can clothesline her. Clothesline me," Chris said, taking a few steps back from Stephanie. "You could do a standing one, or a running one if you want to get a little momentum. If she's running at you, you can just stick your arm out and she'll run right into it."

"If only I had stronger arms so that it would break her nose," Stephanie said vindictively.

Chris was so incredibly turned on at the moment, but he tried to hide it accordingly, but if she didn't stop acting like this, he was going to have to take her up to her office, close the door and well…"Well, I'm glad you want to break her nose," he said instead. "Okay, so run the ropes and hit me."

"I'm actually, I'm not really sure how to run the ropes," Stephanie said, looking at said ropes with a tentative face. "I mean, I've kind of done it before, but I just…I have this irrational fear that I'm going to fall through the ropes and land on my head and so I don't really like to try."

"It's really easy," he said, grabbing her hand and taking her to the ropes. "Come here, we'll start off easy. Just lean against the ropes and kind of bounce off them."

Stephanie might be falling even more in love with Chris as the session went on. He was the most patient man she'd ever met. Her father and Shane were not patient at all, they were always hustling and bustling and working and doing things non-stop and sometimes, when she wanted to catch up, they would leave her in the dust. Andrew had been pushing marriage so he wasn't even that patient. Chris took her through the steps as fast or as slow as she wanted to and he tried to make it fun for her when she got frustrated.

They worked at it for a few hours until Stephanie's body was aching. Chris was a little winded too, but nowhere near Stephanie. They'd been doing mock matches for the last half hour and her muscles were screaming at her to take a break. Chris saw the strain on her face and said that they should call it a day and she'd done a great job. She beamed at him. She silently wondered if he was just being nice, but he really did seem to think she'd done a good job.

"You are going to be so ready for this match," he said, kissing her temple. "I can't wait."

"Me neither," Stephanie said, already picturing herself putting Trish into a Tree of Woe and kicking at her midsection. Her eyes were lighting up just thinking about it.

"What are you thinking, McMahon?" he asked her.

"Just about what I'm going to do to Trish," Stephanie said.

"Well before all of that, let's hit the showers, then I'll take my favorite girl out to lunch," he said, grinning at her.

"Yes, sir," she said cheekily as they headed to the separate showers. Her muscles relaxed a lot as the warm water hit her back and she hummed to herself as she washed her hair. She was feeling so prepared for her match. She knew she'd only get better and better the more she met with Chris. Maybe she could even be a fighting Women's Champion, defending the title and everything. She got out of the shower, dried herself off and changed into a fresh pair of clothes.

Chris was already waiting for her when she was done. "What took you so long?"

"I take longer than you, sorry," she teased.

"Our hair is the same length, what were you doing?"

"Shut up," she said. "Let me just go up to my office and check my messages and then we can head to lunch, okay?"

"Okay," he said as he seized her hand and gave it a squeeze as they began walking towards the elevators. They were riding up to the top floor when the doors opened and Stephanie saw her mother on the other side, waiting for the elevator. Stephanie took a deep breath and instinctively drew closer to Chris.

Linda stepped on and looked at her daughter with a nod, "Stephanie."

"Hello, Mom," Stephanie said and she could feel the disappointment coming off her mother in waves.

"Chris."

"Hi, Linda," Chris said, not entirely sure how to address her. He knew that her family wasn't crazy about what had happened with him and Stephanie, but he didn't know if it was because of the way things went down or because of him personally. He was inclined to believe it was because of the way things had gone down between him, Stephanie, and her aborted wedding and not because they disliked him personally. He wasn't a bad guy. It was then he realized he hadn't even introduced Stephanie to his parents. They knew he was married, the joint phone call of unhappiness and yelling had alerted him to that fact, but they hadn't yet had a chance to meet her. They would love her.

"Your father is in the building, you know," Linda said.

"He does work here," Stephanie said.

"Why are you wet?" Linda asked. She was trying very hard to remain distant, but she missed her daughter and she was finding this invisible gap between them hard to bear.

"Oh," Stephanie said, running her hand over her hair self-consciously. "Chris was training me a little. He wants to make sure that I can take care of myself if the need arose."

Linda just stared at Stephanie and Chris for a moment. She wouldn't admit it, stubbornness was not just a McMahon trait, but she was almost glad to see her daughter's husband taking such an interest in her well-being. From what she'd seen, Chris and Stephanie did seem happy together and he didn't necessarily seem like a horrible man, she just didn't know him and she didn't like that her daughter had gone over them all and seized control of the company. Linda had had no idea of Stephanie's unhappiness with her current position.

"That's a good thing to do," Linda said. "How…" She wasn't sure she should ask lest she appear interested, though she was. "How are you?"

"I'm very well actually," Stephanie said, just a hint of sarcasm in her voice, just enough to get across that she wasn't going to let her mother get to her.

"Good, good," Linda said and she so wanted to just talk to her daughter like they used to, but there was so much betrayal there she felt like she couldn't speak a word. It was the oddest feeling, this distance she felt from her own child. She knew nothing about her life now. She was married, she was learning to wrestle, she was running the company. What next? Was she going to turn up with a child one day? She hated this.

"You?"

"I've been okay," Linda said. The elevator stopped. "Well, this is my floor, goodbye, Stephanie, Chris."

"Bye," they said in unison. Stephanie watched the doors close. "That was rough."

"You know, it might not…might not be a bad idea if you were to…maybe talk to her or go out with her. I mean, just to ease the rift, maybe…" Stephanie sighed. She did miss talking to her mom.

"Maybe…"


	38. Chapter 38

A/N: Thanks for the reviews for this story. It's one of my oldies, but goodies, I think, I hope that it's okay for everyone. This chapter is probably kind of boring, but I like it so I hope you do too, reviews are loved, so leave one if you want. :)

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Stephanie stared out the window, her chin in her hand. There wasn't anything in particular she was looking at as the view wasn't anything spectacular. It was just a normal view of the woods behind her house. She sighed though, as if something in the woods was supposed to give her and answer as to why she was feeling so sad. She knew the answer, she just didn't want to admit that she knew the answer because then she'd be admitting that she missed her family, that she missed her mother.

Seeing her mother and the awkwardness that ensued was as strange for Stephanie as it had been for Linda. Stephanie didn't _hate_ her family, not really, truly, but she was just so disappointed in them for treating her like they did. She just wanted independence, the chance to show them she wasn't just the baby of the family, this little girl who couldn't make her own decisions. She'd been feeling like she wasn't making her own decisions at all in her life, like she was only a pawn to her father, an object to be pushed around and she'd hated that. She was a person with feelings and thoughts and decisions to be made all on her own.

Still, she missed her mother sometimes. Her mother had been one of her best friends growing up. Despite her parents working extremely hard to make the WWF what it was today, her mother had always made sure to have time for Stephanie whenever she needed it. She could remember her mother taking her out for special days of shopping and eating lunch where they would pig out on ice cream sundaes. She could remember her first date and how her mother had been so excited for her they'd gone out and bought a special outfit for her. She laughed quietly when she remembered the outfit, an over-sized shirt that fell off one shoulder where she had rolled up the sleeves and a pair of leggings with a little lace on the bottom. She'd look so ridiculous in that now.

She could feel Chris's presence before he'd even said a word. She was becoming so familiar with it. She could probably feel him in a crowded room if the need arose. It was a comforting feeling, this closeness they had even though he wasn't anywhere near her. She'd felt him walking down the hallway and she could feel him just reaching the doorway and standing there, probably leaning against it. He was making dinner that evening and she said she was going to go upstairs and rest her body from their training earlier.

"Do you think I'm a horrible daughter?" she asked him without turning around.

"Absolutely not."

"I turned against my entire family, I went over their heads to seize control of the company my parents have been building up for such a long time. I just snatched it away like a spoiled little girl."

"You had ideas," Chris said, "you have these wonderful ideas that were getting ignored. You did what you had to do to get noticed and boy have you. I think people think you're the better boss. I don't want to be weird, but I hear things."

She smiled and looked down. "They really like me better?"

"One, you're better to look at it and two, you're not the Scrooge your father was," Chris said, walking a little closer to her. "Your thing with your mom got you shaken up?"

"A little," she said, "I just…I've been thinking about how I've handled things and I really messed them up. I mean, there had to be better ways to get my point across than to skip out on my wedding, marry a guy I barely knew, then take control of the company by pulling the rug out from under my parents."

He sat down behind her. "Well, that middle thing I didn't think was so bad."

"Huh?" she asked, wondering what he meant as she leaned against him. He wrapped his arms around her as he leaned against the wall. She tilted her head back to smile up at him and he took the moment to kiss the tip of her nose before she moved her head down and continued looking at the woods behind their house as the sun was falling behind the trees.

"The whole marrying a guy you barely knew, hope that's not something you're regretting," he said with a laugh, but there was nervousness behind that laugh. Chris never wanted to say it or think it, but there was still that little seed that still nagged him that one day Stephanie would realize she'd married him on a whim and then dump him because what kind of person _did_ that?

"Never," she said, pulling his arms around her even tighter. "I cannot picture myself here, right now, complaining to Andrew."

"No."

"No, our relationship was so…it was just so superficial. I don't think we really knew the meaning of quiet time," she said, "not that Andrew was a bad guy, kind of is now, what with him getting you arrested, but back then, not so much, but it never would've worked, we'd be getting our marriage annulled after a few months, I can see it."

He laughed, "Lucky for you then that you met someone like me who knows what he wants."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I knew I wanted you," he joked.

"You did not, you just wanted to bug me because that's the kind of person you are, you're the kind of person who likes to bug other people and wear them down until they'll marry you and then fall in love with you."

He nodded cheekily, "That does sound like me, yes."

She laughed, "Thank you for making me feel better."

"That's my job," he told her, patting her on the hand. "You know, it wouldn't be crazy if maybe you called your mom and asked her out for lunch or something. I don't think it would make you look weak or like you need help, I think it would just make you look like a person who wants to see her mother."

"It's so hard though," Stephanie said, glancing up at him again, her eyebrows knitted together in worry. "I mean, what do I say to her? What do we talk about? How I took the company?"

"No, you can talk about things that moms and daughters talk about," Chris explained. "I mean, you just call her up and be like, 'Hey Mom, it's Stephanie, I know that things have been strained between us, but I thought that we could put that aside for a little while and meet up for lunch or something,' that's not hard, right?"

"Maybe not for you, but for a McMahon…whole different story."

"Well, it's not like my parents are bashing down the door to see me with happy grins on their faces," he shrugged. "I don't think they're really going to forgive me for marrying you until they meet you."

"They're really that mad?"

"My mom is kind of okay, she said she understands what it means to be impulsive, but she's still pissed that we had this wedding without her. My dad is angry though, he thinks I was stupid and should've thought this through."

"Parents, who needs them?" she joked.

"Well, everyone if they want to be born."

She laughed and snuggled against him more. "Maybe I can meet them, assuage their fears a little bit. I think once they meet me they won't hate me, at least I hope so, and maybe then they'll ease off you."

"That'd be nice," he said, "I still think you should go out with your mom, it can be a friendly thing, trying to get back to how you were before because I know you miss her and well, you're married now so don't you have to go complaining to someone about marriage since like only one of your friends is actually married?"

"I do complain with Lissy," Stephanie said. "We talk about how our husbands never put the toilet seat down or how they always want to have sex, hard life this marriage business."

"But I make you dinner."

"Oh my God, dinner, is it getting burned?" she asked.

"Nah, I made lasagna, it's in the oven baking, that's why I'm up here with you. I made something I could make then forget about so I could come spend time with my wife, see how I think ahead about these things?"

"You're amazing."

"Call your mom," Chris said, poking her in the stomach.

"It's easy to think that I'll call her, but actually calling her? I don't think so. I'd be too embarrassed, we'd not have anything to talk about, we really wouldn't. The entire company would be off-limits and what does that leave us with?"

"Me!" Chris said brightly. "Seriously, I know you and your mom have a lot to talk about. She's probably going to want to know details of our wedding."

"It wasn't exactly an extravaganza," Stephanie told him. "I mean, we got married, then we got married the second time to make it look like I was drunk, wow, what a story."

"I think it's romantic."

"Oh, you do not!" she said, elbowing him in the stomach. "It's not a romantic story, the rest of our relationship is the romantic story, with me falling for you and you falling for me and us being friends and then one night just giving into each other and being in love, _that's_ romantic."

"That's puke-worthy."

"Shut up!" she said, elbowing him again.

"Well then that's what you talk about, how we are now. I bet your parents see us and maybe think we're pretending through this whole relationship and really, what else can they really think, you know? They don't know anything about our lives or how we are. At the very least, you can probably lessen your mother's worries."

"She might not even be worried."

"She's a mother, they worry. You'll get it whenever you have a kid."

"Us, have a kid?"

"In the future!" Chris said. "I'm not ready to be a dad."

"Nor I a mom," Stephanie said.

"You're stalling."

"Chris, don't make me do this," she whined.

"I want you to have what you want back. I don't want you sitting up here acting all depressed looking out the window like your waiting for your man to come home from the Civil War or something."

"I was not projecting something like that."

"Put on the period gown and you definitely would have."

They sat there for a moment, neither one speaking before Chris got up and went over to the bedside table. She groaned as she saw him pick up the phone that was resting there and come back over to her, taking his spot behind her again and thrusting the phone in her face. She shoved it away the first time, but he just put it back in her face. She shook her head no and he put it right up to her face and she shoved it away again. He pushed it towards her again and she growled and grabbed it from him, not noticing the self-satisfied smirk on his face at his triumph.

Stephanie dialed the number aggressively and then as it was ringing she nearly hung it up because she realized what was she was doing. Chris held her wrist, lightly, not hard and rubbed the back of her palm. "You can do this."

"Okay," she croaked uneasily.

"Hello?" It was her mother. Her mother _never_ answered the phone, why was her mother answering the phone now? "Hello?"

"Um, hi," Stephanie said, her voice barely above a squeak.

"Stephanie?"

She cleared her throat, "Um, yes, hi…hi, Mom."

"This is a surprise, is everything okay?" Linda asked. Stephanie knew that Linda thought the only reason she'd ever call was if she was in trouble. "Are you okay? What's going on?"

"I'm okay, Mom," Stephanie said, her voice quiet.

"Why are you whispering?" Linda asked, her voice tinged with franticness.

She cleared her throat again. "Sorry, I'm sorry, just…um, not used to this, I guess. You know, I'm probably bugging you…"

"Stephanie," Chris crooned in her ear.

"You're not bugging me," Linda said.

"You're not like, eating dinner?"

"No, we've finished dinner."

"Oh," Stephanie said, "well, um, I guess, what I was trying to ask is, well, you don't have to, but I thought maybe we could put aside all the…stuff with the company and maybe go out for lunch." She finished her question so quickly, the last part of it seemed as if it were one long, mumbled word.

"Lunch?"

"Yeah, tomorrow, if you're free, maybe."

"Just you?"

"Yeah, just me, I mean, Chris could come if you want him to, but he doesn't have to, I thought it could be us, but I mean, Chris wouldn't be mad if you wanted him to come."

"Yes, I would, I don't want a girly lunch," Chris whispered to her and then grunted when her elbow sharply hit his stomach.

"I would like to have lunch with _you_, if that's okay."

"It's fine, Chris didn't want a girly lunch."

"Now you're stealing my lines!"

"Shh," she hissed at him.

"Stephanie, is everything okay?"

"Yeah, it's fine, I'm fine, Chris is just here with me, sitting here with me," she explained. "He's sitting with me."

"Oh, well, okay, so lunch…"

"Tomorrow if that's okay with you?"

"That'd be fine, I'd like that actually, thank you for inviting me."

"You're welcome, I'll meet you at work?"

"Yes, we can meet there, I look forward to it."

"Okay then."

"I love you, Stephanie," Linda said, throwing it out there. Stephanie smiled a little and Chris kissed her neck.

"I love you too, Mom."


	39. Chapter 39

A/N: Thanks for the reviews for this, hope you're still enjoying the story and if you'd like, reviews would be very welcome, thanks. :)

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"I shouldn't be nervous about just going to lunch with my mom, but I am."

"Well, it's been a while since you've been able to see and talk to her without you guys getting in a fight or you know, ever since everything happened between us, but I don't think you should be scared, it's your mom, remember?"

"I know it's my mom, but I betrayed her and what if she looks down on me now?"

"She doesn't look down on you, she loves you," Chris pointed out. "She's your mom and she loves you. Just remember that. It's just lunch and I think that you guys will have fun."

"I hope so," she sighed. She really did hope this went well. It would be easy for this to devolve into a fight or a showdown. At least her father wasn't coming or that's exactly how it would turn out. She knew her father was still upset with her for the coup she had perpetrated on him. She could understand why he was angry with her, but she felt like it was her only option, the only way she would make a splash and get noticed. She knew her father kept up with everything she did and she hoped he knew that she was doing a really great job. Everyone thought so and she hoped he thought so as well.

"You will, relax," Chris said, starting to massage her shoulders. "It's just your mom, if you think it's starting to get hard, then you just have to remember that."

"Okay," she said, leaning her head back to smile at him. "Thank you for being here. You really didn't have to come."

"I know I didn't, but I wanted to. I'm here to be your moral support, I'm pretty sure that's what I'm supposed to do, as your husband. You come out with me when I have my matches so the least I can do is support you with stuff that you do. Maybe I can come with you to work and just cheer you on."

"You're crazy," she said, standing up and wrapping her arms around him. Then she hugged him tightly. "You're the best though."

"Why thank you," he told her, hugging her back. He felt another presence and he looked up to see Linda standing in the doorway. He pulled away from Stephanie a little bit, feeling like he was getting caught with his girlfriend by her mother, except Stephanie was his wife and he was allowed to do something as innocent as hug her. "Hello, Linda."

"Chris," Linda nodded at him, not really sure how to address him. She was only just getting used to the idea of Andrew being in their lives when he became engaged to Stephanie and then she turns around and married Chris. Linda had no time to adjust to Chris and now suddenly this man she hardly knew was in her family, with her daughter. She knew that this was probably all business, but it didn't mean this man wasn't a part of her family for now.

"How are you?" Chris asked, not knowing what else to say to her. He'd never sat down with the woman and he only knew what Stephanie had told him about her. But still, he felt like he should say something so as not to appear rude.

"I'm well, and yourself?" Linda asked politely.

"I'm doing well too," he said back to her.

"Good," Linda said, "Stephanie, are you ready?"

"Yeah, I am, Mom, hold on," Stephanie said, leaning up to kiss Chris's cheek. For some reason she felt uncomfortable giving him any kind of real kiss. She just hoped that he understood. Chris gave her another hug.

"Good luck," he whispered into her ear and she pulled away and smiled at him. She turned and grabbed her coat and Chris helped her put it on before Stephanie followed Linda out of the room.

"Did you want to take my car?" Stephanie asked.

"I had the limo today, we can use that," Linda said, then realized she was almost telling her daughter what to do so she corrected herself. "If that's okay with you of course."

"Yeah, that's fine, did you know where you wanted to go?"

"I was thinking Galliano's, if you feel like Italian."

"I always feel like it, you know that, Mom," Stephanie said with a light laugh, trying to ease the mood. Judging by her mother's smile, she guessed she had at least a little.

"I do know that, I guess I do still know you."

"I'm still your daughter, Mom," Stephanie pointed out. "Just because things are a little different now doesn't change that fact and I wouldn't change that fact even if I could."

"I'm glad for that," Linda told her honestly. She didn't want to lose her daughter. If she had to get to know her daughter as she was now, she would embrace the chance. She hated when her family was at odds. Her husband and son were a little different in their thinking, especially Vince. Vince could carry a grudge forever if you let him, but this was their daughter and she deserved a chance to explain and to be accepted back into the family. She didn't want to lose someone as important as her child.

They rode to the restaurant and then it was just them, at a table, sitting with each other and each having something to say, but neither one finding their voice. Stephanie looked desperately at her menu, covering her face, trying to think of something, _anything_, to say at her mother that wouldn't come off as weird or haughty or just completely unnecessary. She'd had lots to talk about before, what with her wedding and everything. She'd spoken to her mother nearly everyday about wedding plans and what she wanted the centerpieces at the reception to look like or what song to use for their first dance. Now though, things were so different.

"What are you having?" Stephanie finally asked, breaking the tension.

"I was thinking the rigatoni with pesto," Linda said, bringing her menu down.

"That sounds good," Stephanie nodded. "Everything sounds good, I don't know how I'll decide."

"I'm sure you'll find something," Linda told her.

"Yeah," Stephanie said, though she already knew what she was getting. The bus boy came by to fill up their waters and Stephanie grabbed for it eagerly. Her mouth felt very dry and she needed something to drink so this was a godsend. She gulped at her water, nearly spilling some right down her front. She put the glass down and then looked up at her mother, who was staring at her.

"You're nervous."

"What?" Stephanie asked.

"Stephanie, I'm your mother, I know when you're nervous," Linda said. "So come on, spill."

"I don't know," she said, "I just feel so strange sitting across from you and really having nothing to say. It's never been like that before, but it is now and it's just strange that I feel like I can't talk to you."

"I understand, a lot has happened, hasn't it?"

"Yes, a lot," Stephanie agreed. She did have things she wanted to talk to her mother about, but she just couldn't get herself to really say the words that she wanted to say. It was very frustrating for her, but she had to try. "I know that I made you all angry with me when I took over the business, but I needed to, for me. I have ideas, lots of them and I felt like I was getting overlooked. I needed to prove to you guys that I was good enough for this company."

"And you felt this was the only way?"

"Yes, I did. Chris and I, well, he told me I was good enough to get the power that I wanted. He encouraged me."

"He did?"

"Yes," Stephanie nodded. "And he was so enticing. He promised it all to me and I liked it so I took control of the company because I know that I'm good enough. It wasn't necessarily to slight you and Dad or Shane, but it was more to say that I'm here now and I can handle the responsibility and I think the company is running quite smoothly with me at the helm."

"I'm not going to argue that, you have been doing a great job," Linda complimented her. "I just don't think you went about it in the right way."

"And what would've been the right way, Mom? I'd been trying to get you and Dad to listen to me, I've been trying for _years_ to get you and Dad to see the potential in me. Dad was perfectly content in controlling me and sticking me in the accounting department or somewhere else in the annals of Titan and I wasn't happy like that. I didn't know how else to get you to see what I could do."

The waiter came just then to take their orders and Linda waited until he was gone to respond. "I just don't understand what you get from marrying someone you don't know and then taking over the company. I don't understand why you couldn't marry Andrew."

"Andrew wasn't good for me. It wasn't necessarily that he was using me, I don't think he was, he just wasn't right for me. He was safe, boring, not what I really wanted in a man. We never would have lasted and better to figure that out before we get married."

"Then you go and get married without telling anyone. Do you know how much that hurt? We'd been planning your wedding so meticulously. It was supposed to be everything we wanted it to be, the both of us. Then suddenly you're married to this other man and I don't know a thing about him, about your lives, if he's even good enough to be with you."

"He's good enough," Stephanie told her mother. "Believe me, he's good enough."

"But I don't know that. From what I do know, this was a marriage out of convenience. You gave him something he wanted and he did the same for you. How can you be in a marriage like that? I don't understand what you're both getting from this marriage, if anything at all."

"Mother, I'm getting a lot from this marriage, everything that a marriage should be, at least from what I've seen of marriage. I'm still new to it, but I'm slowly figuring it out."

"You barely know the man, he's only been in this company a few months and then you go off and marry him. What do you even know about him?"

"I know plenty about him," Stephanie protested.

"You've known him how long?"

"I've known him long enough," Stephanie said. "I love him."

Linda's eyes widened and Stephanie stood her ground, keeping her eyes locked with her mother's. She wasn't lying either. She loved Chris. She loved him in a way that she had never loved any other man. It made all those other men seem so trifling. They'd meant nothing to her and she had no regrets being with Chris and if her mother didn't understand that, so be it. She knew what she felt and she knew what was true. And loving Chris, to her, was as true as it got.

"You love him?"

"Yes, I love him, I love him very much," Stephanie said.

"But you barely know him."

"Mom, I know so much about him and what I don't know, I'm learning. I'll admit, when we were first married, yes, it was a little hasty. But it's different now, very different," she told her mother.

"Is that so?"

I'm not going to justify my relationship with Chris to you," Stephanie said, rubbing her temples. "This is exactly what I was talking about, Mom. You're judging me, thinking that you know what's best for me when I don't think you do. Do I seem unhappy with Chris? You can't judge him because you don't know him."

"I'm sorry," Linda said, realizing that she had been part of the problem. "You're right, I shouldn't judge him. I just worry about you because you marry this many you barely know and I'm your mother, I'm inclined to worry about you, that's all."

"He's wonderful," Stephanie said and the dreamy quality didn't go unnoticed by Linda.

"Is he?"

"You have no idea, Mom, he's so much better than I ever thought, I love being married to him," Stephanie said, "I love _him_."

Linda, on any other occasion, would have been suspicious, but Stephanie's voice and the look on her face led her to believe that Stephanie was being completely honest. It took her aback a little bit. She didn't think Stephanie's feelings for Chris had been completely sincere, but her demeanor told her otherwise. Stephanie had a soft smile on her face that started to turn into an all-out grin the more she thought about Chris.

"You really do," Linda said, more a statement than a question.

"I never thought I could feel like this over someone," Stephanie gushed. "But I do and it's for Chris and he's just the best. He's always there for me and he loves me, Mom, for me, just for me, not for anything I can do for him, not for the money, not for anything, just me. I love him for that."

"Wow," Linda said. Maybe she'd had this relationship figured out all wrong. "Well, why don't you tell me more about him then?"

"I'd love to," Stephanie grinned.

Linda felt like they were getting back on track.


	40. Chapter 40

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Hope you enjoy this chapter, leave a review if you feel so inclined and I hope you are inclined. :P

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Chris was watching TV when he heard the front door open. His ears perked up and he sat up a little straighter, watching the doorway. He could hear Stephanie set her keys down on the table by the front door and then he followed her sounds into the kitchen where she was probably putting her purse down. Then finally, she showed up in the doorway and he opened his arms up to her. She came over and plopped herself down on the couch, crawling eagerly into his arms, where he enveloped her in a hug. He kissed her forehead, but she brought his face down to hers, leaning up just slightly to press her lips against his. She teased her tongue against his mouth and he opened up his mouth, welcoming her inside.

When they finally pulled away, Chris's lips felt on fire and he opened his eyes to look down at her. "Well, I'm guessing that went well."

"It was okay," she told him. "I wouldn't say that it was the best thing to ever happen, but it was a step in the right direction."

"What happened?"

"Well, we went out to lunch and it was fine," Stephanie said. "I mean, at first it was really awkward. Just…so painfully awkward. I felt like I had nothing to say to my mom, which has never happened before. I usually have so much to say to her, but it felt like there was this wall, plus there was the obvious elephant in the room."

"So you guys just sat in silence?" Chris asked, trying not to picture that in his mind and laughing. He was just picturing Stephanie and her mom sitting around, looking at menus, inspecting the water glasses.

"For a few minutes, but then we just started talking and it felt good," Stephanie said. "I'd missed her, as you know, and it was just nice to talk to her. We tried not to talk about the company a lot, but you know, it inevitably came up. She's just worried about me."

"I can understand that, my mom is worried about me too."

"Yeah, I guess Moms worry," Stephanie said. "Then we got to talking and then we started talking about you and things got a little bit ugly with that." She burrowed into his side, laying her cheek against his t-shirt-covered chest. He was so warm and soft. She closed her eyes and felt him play with her hair.

"You guys fought over me."

"I put her in her place."

"Why would you guys fight over me?" he wondered.

"Because of our marriage, she just doesn't believe that we're really together, I guess I don't blame her, but it still irked me. I mean, yes, we started off as a business arrangement, I understand that, but it's different now and it was like she didn't want to take my word for that. She thinks I'm just doing this to get back at them."

"It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks as long as we know the truth," he said, kissing her forehead again. It calmed her down. His touch always did. She could just fall asleep against him right now and how tempting that was, to just close her eyes and fall asleep in Chris's arms. Her parents didn't understand. She'd not meant to fall in love with Chris, but she _was_ in love with him now and that counted for a lot; it counted for everything. She'd given this man everything she had to offer, her love, her body, everything. He had it all.

"Yeah, I guess, but what does your mom think about the two of us?" she asked.

"Well, I guess she's in the same boat as your mom, except for the entire planned a wedding thing. I think my mom is just mad about how rushed it is and yeah, she thinks it's out of convenience as well."

"Yes, so I was thinking on the way home," Stephanie said, pulling away from Chris reluctantly. She wanted to stay encircled in his warmth, but she wanted to face him. "I mean, we didn't exactly have the best wedding, did we?"

"I thought it was fine," he joked, but then off her look. "Okay, it wasn't the dream wedding anyone really has, no."

"I was thinking that maybe we could have another wedding, I know we're married, but nobody really saw us get married. I guess you can say they did on the video we did, but that wasn't real, that didn't represent who we are now and I'm not even saying let's just do this for us because I'm fine with not having a wedding, but I kind of…I guess I kind of want to have a wedding that our families can enjoy."

"So you want to please everyone else?" he questioned.

"No, not entirely. I do like what we are now, I love that we're together, I love you, I love that I don't have to hide my feelings or pretend like I'm not attracted to you. I've given you everything I've had to give. This wedding can give us a chance to show that, to each other, to everyone else."

"I get your point, but you really want to do this?"

"I think it would be nice. Think about your mom, do you think she would enjoy it, don't you want to make her happy?"

He thought about his mother and the phone call he'd given her to tell him that he was married. It _may_ have been right before he'd actually gone out there to tell everyone he'd married Stephanie, but at least he'd told his mother before it all went down albeit just before it all went down. But still, that qualified as telling her before the world knew. She hadn't known to react; he'd stunned her so much the words were lost in her throat. He thought back to that phone call.

"_Hey, Mom, it's me, Chris."_

"_Chris, sweetie, it's been so long…aren't you working right now, I'm watching Raw. Shouldn't you be doing something?" she asked._

"_Yeah, I'm…I'm actually going out there in a moment, so…but I just wanted to call you before you watched what was about to happen."_

"_What do you mean? I didn't think you had a match. All I see going on is this wedding with that McMahon girl and her fiancé," his mother said._

"_Yeah, I know, Mom…well, what…I just, it's just…I…well, I got married."_

"_Excuse me? I don't think I heard you correctly."_

"_That McMahon girl, the one that is having the wedding, I kind of married her while she was on her bachelorette trip in Vegas. We kind of just decided to get married. I wanted to tell you so you knew what was going to happen in a few minutes. I'm interrupting the wedding, she's my wife."_

"_Christopher…"_

"_I know, Mom, I should have told you."_

"_Do you even know this girl? Do you _love_ this girl? Why is this the first I'm hearing of it? And she's _engaged_? Were you having an affair with her? Chris, what are you thinking?" she wondered, the questions coming off rapidly like little pellets flinging at his face._

"_It was just a thing, a whirlwind thing," he said, trying to convince his mother this was real. He didn't want to think about how she'd feel if he knew he married someone solely for business and what he could get out of the relationship in the form of material goods. His mother had wanted better for him._

"_Whirlwind?"_

"_I don't know, I just fell for her and I know that I love her," he lied, "and I want to be with her and so we got married."_

"_Who's that?" Chris could hear his dad ask in the background._

"_It's Chris," his mother said._

"_What does he want, isn't he working?" Ted asked._

"_He got married."_

"_What!"_

His dad was really angry about his decision. They hadn't spoken since it had happened. His father had tried to yell at him, but Chris had told him he needed to leave. He tried calling after the show was over, but his father had refused to speak with him and his mother just went on and on about how she'd always wanted to see her only child get married and how she would never get to see it now and she didn't even know Stephanie and had never met her and it was like she was excluded from everything.

"Yeah, she _would_ really enjoy it," Chris sighed. "If it makes you happy then we can do it."

"No, none of that, mister," she told him, shaking her head, "I don't like that whole if it makes you happy spiel. I want you to be in on this too. If you don't want to do it, then that's fine, I'm just talking with you about it so we can come to a mutual decision about it. What are your thoughts on it, honestly?"

"My mom would love it. She'd get to see me married and my dad could see how happy I actually am. Plus, I _do_ want everyone to know that I love you. I know that we've been pretending for a while--"

"Hey, who's pretending right now?" Stephanie asked, tilting her head and opening her mouth a little in surprise.

"Okay, I know that we_ were_ pretending for a while, but I love you, I love everything about you, I love being with you right here, talking, I love being with you in bed, I love knowing I'm going to be with you when I'm not with you. I love you."

"Save those for the vows," she winked. Then she leaned forward and hugged him. "I think this will be really good. Everyone is going to know that we're serious about each other and serious about this commitment. And if this doesn't get Trish off your back I'm going to have to spear her through a table or something."

Chris laughed and hugged her back. "I would actually like to see that if it's alright with you."

"Of course you would," she joked. "Okay, so that's settled, I'm going to go upstairs and just take a shower and then we can go to dinner at my parents' house and then have the rest of the night to ourselves, so I'll just be going upstairs now."

Chris smiled at her back, then frowned, "Hey, wait a second, did you just say dinner at your parent's house, what…tonight?"

"Um, yeah, be ready by 6," she told him, her back still to him and he knew she was refusing to look at him right now."

"Stephanie," he said, drawing out her name a few more syllables than necessary.

"Yes?" she asked coyly.

"What do you mean dinner at your parents' house?"

"Just that, well, my mom said that my dad would probably like to see me, that he misses me and I know she kind of wants to rebuild that bridge and that dinner would be nice and they could get to know you and my brother probably won't be there so you're off the hook with that," she told him, slowly turning around. "I know it's short notice, but--"

"But you saw fit to just make the plans anyways, without giving me any warning whatsoever."

"I'm sorry," she said, her brows knitting together in worry. "I know I should've talked to you first, but I just…I just missed my mom and I don't know, I miss having a family I guess. I know I shouldn't, I know that my father and brother are the problem, that they control me and they need to learn, but don't you feel lonely sometimes, not talking to your dad. Aren't there things that you want to say to him, but he won't even speak to you?"

Chris sighed, "Yeah, I want to talk to him all the time. Sometimes just to talk about hockey. He knows more than anyone I've ever known."

"Well, he played, but you see where I'm coming from. I miss my dad, hell I miss my douche of a brother sometimes too. My mom promised that this would not be about business, that this would be a family dinner and that business would not be discussed. I think they just want to appraise us."

"Oh, that makes me feel better," Chris groaned. "Your parents want to measure me up, make sure that I'm okay for their daughter…and what if I'm not? Is your father going to demand we get a divorce, lock us in the house?"

"No, he doesn't get a say, I'm sure my mother has told him this."

"And how do we _not_ talk about business? We're all in the business! It's not like I'm a lawyer and they can ask me about cases and what not, I'm a wrestler, I do that, they are that, you're that."

"We can talk about us or just our relationship. I just want…I don't know what I want. I guess I please others too much and I don't take the time to please myself. I'm doing it again, I'm trying to be what they want me to be."

"No, you're not," he told her.

"Of course I am."

"Stephanie, I'm just not ready to face your parents, but I will for you."

"No, you shouldn't, like I said, I want you to be happy."

Chris got up and crossed the room in two strides, taking her face in his hands. His hands were cool on her skin and she shivered a little, wondering if it was from the temperature of his hands or from his touch. These were the nice kind of shivers so she figured his touch. He smiled gently at her and leaned forward, pressing his lips against hers. She opened her mouth slightly and invited his tongue in. He took advantage of it and swept his tongue into her mouth teasingly. She moaned softly and he pulled away, grinning as he took in her blissful face.

"I'll go because I like making you happy, making you happy is what makes _me_ happy. They're just your parents and our feelings are real. I don't have to pretend like I don't love you because I _do_ love you. Whatever they want to throw at me, I can handle because at the end of the day, I get you."

"My dad might be mean," she said warily.

"Steph, don't you know by now?"

"No what?" she wondered, looking up into those blue eyes.

"You're not getting rid of me."


	41. Chapter 41

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys, I really appreciate it. Hope you enjoy the chapter and reviews will make my day. :)

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"Thank you for looking nice."

"I can clean up well," Chris said, rolling up one of his sleeves. She'd told him not to dress too fancy because then it would seem obvious that he was trying to make a good impression. So instead, he'd put on a nice, button-down dress shirt and rolled up the sleeves and some black dress pants. He looked nice, but it was still casual enough to where he didn't feel like he was going to a job interview. "As you can see."

"You look good," she said, turning him towards her and pushing some of his hair back. "And thank you for pulling your hair back. It makes you look a lot more sophisticated."

"You're just full of compliments tonight," Chris said, reaching out to brush her hair off her shoulders. "You look beautiful tonight as well and I love when you wear your hair down like this and behind your shoulders. It makes you look like an angel."

"Okay, I get it, Chris, now you're just trying to mock me," she said, glaring at him a little bit. He tried to hold in his laugh, but couldn't and gave a soft chuckle before he leaned down to kiss her gently. He didn't press too hard lest he ruin her lip gloss. Then he pulled away and winked at her. "Everything is going to be fine, okay, don't worry about tonight, my parents aren't going to try and pull anything, I think they just want to see us and talk with us."

"You mean talk with me," he said, looking up the looming driveway. "You know, I've been here once before. I don't think you remember because you weren't here."

She thought for a moment, trying to figure out when Chris could have been here before that she wasn't here for, then she recalled it, "Oh yeah, before you signed with the company, right, to meet with my dad, I remember that, well, I remember him telling me about that at least. So this shouldn't be too scary for you."

"Well, when I went to that meeting it was because I wanted to work for your dead, which was a little less intimidating than coming into the house as his son-in-law. Never did I think I'd hold that moniker or even anything close to it, a little weird."

"You do now so you have to own up to it, are you ready to own up to it?" she asked him, placing her hands on his shoulders. "I think that you are going to go in there and show them that you are worthy of being in this family."

"You give the strangest pep talks," he told her and she frowned. "Your house is just intimidating. I think we could be married fifty years and I would come here and it would still be intimidating. It just has that aura."

"An aura of oppression and stifling?" she wondered.

"Okay, now _you_ need a pep talk," he told her. "Look, it's just your parents. We're _married_. We love each other or at least I'm hoping you love me." She shoved him in the shoulder. "Okay, that's not going to convince them of anything. But you love me, I love you, everything is going to be fine. Just like it will be fine when we go to my parents' house next weekend."

He started walking up the driveway and Stephanie chased after him and grabbed his forearm, turning him around. "What did you just say?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought this was how our relationship worked now, we just do things and not tell the other until right before. Actually, I probably should have waited to tell you that bit of news until we were boarding the plane and you asked where we were going and I would have told you we were going to Winnipeg."

"Chris, are you serious?" she asked him, wondering if he was joking with her. She twisted her lips a little bit. She didn't know if she was ready to meet Chris's parents. His mother sounded okay, but his father was completely against their marriage and it hadn't even been that long and maybe he hadn't cooled down and would kick her out of his house and she couldn't imagine Chris standing for that and she didn't want to cause an even deeper rift in his relationship with his father.

"Yes, I'm serious. You said that you wanted to meet them, you want to have a second wedding or a first real wedding if that's how you prefer to look at it and so I'm just thinking ahead that maybe if we're going to do that, that maybe you should meet my parents first. Hey, do you think I should ask your father for your hand in marriage?"

"Very funny," she said, grabbing his hand. "Come on, we don't want to be late. I don't think it would make a good impression if we were late."

They walked hand-in-hand towards the door and Stephanie was the one to press the doorbell. Chris rubbed his free hand onto his pants. It wasn't that he was nervous per se, it was just…well, okay, he was a little nervous. He knew he was already Stephanie's husband and nothing was going to change that and he knew that it wasn't his first time meeting Stephanie's parents because they were his bosses, but there was always some kind of primal fear that came when going over to your significant other's parents' home. He was feeling that anxiety as he sat there.

A maid or servant or whatever they were called answered the door. Stephanie greeted them politely and she showed them into the living room, where her parents were sitting. Stephanie looked around the room and her eyes fell to the corner where Shane was sitting and he wasn't alone. He had his stupid posse with him. She felt a little ambushed and looked to Chris, who was looking around the room himself. It seemed he hadn't seen Shane yet. Her grip tightened on his hand as Vince stood up.

"Hello," he said, trying to appear friendly or something surrounding friendly, but not quite friendly.

"I'm glad you two made it," Linda said, breezing into the room. "Do you two want anything to drink? We have everything, Chris, all you have to do is just say the word."

"Wow, um, I'll have a beer?" Chris asked, wondering if that would be an okay choice or if he was expected to get something fancy.

"Of course, of course," Linda said. "Stephanie?"

"I'll just come help you," Stephanie said, letting go of Chris's hand and he kind of felt adrift in a vast sea now. "I'll be right back," she told him softly and it was only now that he spotted the other four people in the room, all of whom were glaring at him with dark intentions in their faces. He wasn't intimidated by those losers though. He walked over to Vince and shook his hand.

"Hello, Vince."

"Hello, Chris," he said and then Chris stood there because he didn't know what else to say and it didn't seem the Vince did either. "Did you park in the driveway?" was what Vince settled for in the way of questioning. He could tell Vince had more to say, but with the women coming back any moment, he wasn't getting the opportunity to say those things. Chris was a little grateful. He was more uncomfortable with Shane though. Now he and his friends were talking in low whispers.

"Yeah, yeah we did," he said, looking around the room. "This is beautiful. I don't think I got to see around here when I came before…"

Stephanie was helping her mother pour some drinks, but she was peeved and not hiding it. "What are Shane and his stooges doing here?" she hissed at her mother.

"They just happened to come, Stephanie, I didn't invite them," Linda said. "They came because Shane needed to talk to your father and they were going out, but found out, not from me, that you and Chris were coming tonight and they wanted to stay. I can't just throw them out."

"Mom, as if it's not bad enough that we have to deal with Dad, we have to deal with Shane too, the man who was _so_ against my relationship with Andrew. God, he hated Andrew and we actually dated. He's going to wring Chris over the coals!"

"I won't let it happen," Linda told her, "I am still his mother and I have warned him that that kind of behavior will not be acceptable tonight."

"Yeah, we'll see how that goes," Stephanie said, rolling her eyes and grabbing her drink and Chris's. She had a feeling this wasn't going to be her last one by any means. She walked into the other room and Chris was kind of walking around as Vince showed him the various items all over the place and their relative values. She walked over to him and handed him his beer, which he took gratefully.

"I was just showing Chris some things around here," Vince said.

"Nice," Stephanie said as she took Chris's hand and sat down with him on the couch. "How have you been, Dad?"

"I've been better," he told her, looking at her.

"I'm not discussing business with you," Stephanie told him firmly. "Anything business related can be discussed at a later date."

"Oh, now that you run the company, you think you can run the family too?" Shane asked, standing up. "I don't think any of this is real, you know, you and Chris, I think you're just a bunch of fakes. What are you getting out of this, Chris? Money? Power? What is your end of the bargain for helping my sister steal the company from her family? It must be pretty damn good, huh?"

"Don't talk to her like that," Chris said, standing up. He was gripping his glass so tightly he was afraid if might break in his hands. "Don't you dare talk to her like that?"

"Oh, she's got you trained really well, doesn't she?" Shane sneered.

"Chris, let's just go," Stephanie said, standing up and grabbing Chris's hand. She grabbed the glass that looked like it was about to shatter and put it down on the table next to her own. "I'm sorry, Dad, I thought that we could have a nice dinner…"

Linda walked into the room with the rest of the drinks and saw everyone standing up and looking at one another. "What's going on here?"

"I'm sorry, Mom, but Chris and I can't stay," Stephanie told her. "We'll reschedule this for a less _busy_ time if that's alright with you. Come on, Chris."

"No!" Linda said. "I'm not going to stand for this. Shane, I know this has something to do with you--"

"She stole the company from us!" Shane yelled. "She took it over without even asking. She drove us away from the business that _we've_ created!"

"You weren't giving me a fair chance!" Stephanie yelled at him. "For all my life I've just been Shane's younger sister, Vince and Linda's daughter. Everyone thought I didn't belong, that I was only here because of who my parents were. Nobody thought I was even competent at my job. Andrew wanted to control me, wanted to make me into that pretty, little wife who stayed at home. Everyone, _everyone_ had a perception of me as this meek, innocent little girl who wasn't capable of doing anything and I was sick of it! I _am_ competent and I'm damn good at what I do! I'm running this company and it's going great. I've signed high prospects, people who are going places and the ratings are high and steady! I'm doing my job the best I know how, but none of you saw it. You all just wanted me to be that little Stephanie who you could drag around and do whatever you wanted. Chris was the _only_ person who didn't see me like that! The _only_ one and I love him, do you get that, Shane! I love this man! He's getting nothing out of this relationship except for my love!"

"Stephanie…" Linda started.

"No," she said, on the verge of a spew of angry tears. "None of you get it, none of you get me, you've been too busy with your own things, your own lives to really see me. Well this is who I am now. I'm in charge and none of you are in charge so if you want something done, you come to _me_. That's how it is, if you can't deal with that, then you can give your two weeks notice. Shane, if you have a problem with me running the company then you can leave, you're expendable as far as I'm concerned. Oh, and for the record, Chris and I were going to have a second wedding so all our friends and family could attend, but maybe none of you should come! Come on, Chris!"

Stephanie started to pull Chris from the house and he followed willingly. Once outside, Stephanie took a deep breath and fell into Chris's arms. He hugged her to him and kissed her head. "You okay? You were pretty…impassioned in there."

"Is that what they're calling it these days?"

"I didn't want to say crazy," he joked around with her. "Thank you for defending me though."

"I probably shouldn't have gotten so mad at my parents, it was mostly Shane who was terrible. I think my mom told my dad to be nice and that's why he wasn't saying anything because he had the same thoughts as Shane."

"Are you sure you want to go?" he asked. "I mean, we could go back in, maybe try again."

"No, I don't want to go back in. I want them to think about what I said. I want them to think about how they've treated me."

"Do you think it will change their minds?" She wondered about the question, then shrugged her shoulders.

"It's worth the shot."


	42. Chapter 42

A/N: Thanks for the reviews for this one. I can't believe it's over 40 chapters, I was looking it over and man, this is a long story. Thanks to everyone who's been sticking with it. I'm glad you're enjoying it and if you like the chapter, leave a review. ;) Enjoy! :)

Oh, and just a small side note, as this story takes place before 9/11, airport procedures in this chapter are not what is allowed today, but was still allowed back then. :)

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"Do you think we're crazy for having another wedding?"

"It was your idea," Chris pointed out to her. "So it's not really a _we_ kind of thing, it's more a _you_ kind of thing."

"You agreed to it," she argued and he laughed and pulled her into his lap. She pouted and he kissed her bottom lip. "I don't know, it's just…I mean, with my family and ten we're going to meet your family in however long it takes to get to Winnipeg…Chris, I'm nervous."

"I know," he told her, taking her hands, which were already shaking slightly. "There's nothing to be nervous about, I promise you, everything is going to be fine, okay? I won't let anyone talk badly to you and I love you and there's nothing to worry about."

She contemplated whether or not she should articulate her fears to Chris. She sighed and realized that if she couldn't talk to him about this, then she wasn't being honest with him. "I don't…I fear…that I'm going to make you lose your family."

"What do you mean?" he asked, tucking some hair behind her ear. "You couldn't make me lose my family unless you plan to have hits put out on them or something?"

She laughed a little. He was good at that, putting humor into a situation to make her feel more at ease, "Your dad is _so_ mad at you right now. He practically hates you for marrying me. I don't want to be the girl that tears apart your family."

"You really think you're going to tear apart my family?"

"Yes…no, I don't know," she told him. "Your mom, she doesn't mind, right?"

"No, she doesn't mind too much. She knows we're young, we're impulsive. Hell, I think she's kind of been expecting this ever since I started wrestling. Except she probably thought that the woman would be knocked up before I married them."

Stephanie laughed and kissed his cheek. "So your excuse is just that you're young and impulsive?"

"Yes, that's my excuse," Chris said. "I'm not joking about the coming home with a wife thing. With how much I traveled in the beginning, I think she thought I'd have a girl at every port, you know, and that I would slip up and end up getting some girl pregnant. She had a very skewed point of view with wrestling."

"Except that happens all the time," she told him.

"Yeah, not with me," Chris told her and she raised an eyebrow. "Not to say that I didn't sleep with people on the road, but I was careful and I don't have kids roaming the globe that I don't know about. Look, she understands that we were impulsive and wanted to get married and did get married. That's her thought process. My dad…he just thinks I'm being irresponsible, but he dated my mother for four years before he proposed."

"Old fashioned?"

"Yeah, he's pretty old fashioned, but he also was playing hockey and all that," Chris explained. "He made my mom wait until he could take care of her and all this crap. It's just his mentality. He thinks that the man provides for the woman, who stays at home and plays that quintessential mother role. It's not a bad line of thinking for him, but for me, it's not the right one. Hell, you make _way_ more than I do."

She laughed. "I do at that."

"Once they meet you, talk to you, understand how I fell in love you, they'll love you."

"You're just saying that."

"Only because I mean it," he said to her. Then he groaned and looked over her shoulder. She looked behind her and saw Kurt Angle walking down the corridor. "If he is getting on our plane to Winnipeg, I'm going to kill him."

"He's not, I'm sure he's just flying home to Philadelphia. We _are_ in the airport after all, Chris, and we just had a house show last night and you know everyone is flying out right now. It could've been anyone that we'd see."

"Except it's him."

"He might not even see us," Stephanie said. "Just ignore him and maybe he'll walk right by."

"Yeah right, the guy has sonar for you or something," Chris scoffed.

He couldn't stand the moves that Kurt was trying to put on his wife so every time they saw him, Chris had to put his alert on. There was something sinister about Kurt that he couldn't quite put his finger on. There was something to him, something that bothered Chris. Kurt put on this mask, like he was just another nice guy, an Olympic champion, an American hero pretty much, but it felt like a façade. There was something deeper inside him and Chris was sure that he didn't like it.

Chris loved his wife and he wasn't about to let any guy take her away from him. He'd fallen so hard for Stephanie that any thought of her leaving him, especially for another guy, was not a thought he wanted to entertain. Stephanie leaned forward to kiss him, tilting her head and tipping his chin up. He wasn't expecting it at first so it startled him, but he let himself fall into the kiss. He knew she was doing it so Kurt would walk by and not notice it was them, but it wasn't like he was going to not kiss her for that diversionary tactic.

"Stephanie?"

Chris groaned against her lips and pulled away. Stephanie put on her nicest smile and turned to Kurt. "Hello, Kurt."

"What are you guys doing here?"

Chris turned away and rolled his eyes. No, this couldn't go unsaid. "What do you _think_ we're doing? We're sitting in an airport, do you think we're going for a tour?"

Stephanie pinched Chris in the side. "We're just heading out, Kurt."

Kurt looked up at the sign. "Winnipeg?"

"We're going to see my parents, do you want to know anything else about things that are none of your business?" Chris asked snidely. He was gnashing his teeth together and Stephanie pinched him again. He pinched her on her hip and she glared at him for a second.

"I'm going to meet Chris's parents," Stephanie explained.

"You've never met them, how long have you two been married? Didn't you meet them before you guys were married?" Kurt said, obviously trying to get under Chris's skin. Stephanie could feel him tense under her and she rolled her eyes.

"Chris and I eloped and so no, I've never met his parents, but that's why I'm going to Winnipeg, in order to meet them," Stephanie told him.

"That should be fun," Kurt said. "I probably would've let you meet my mom straight away though. My dad died when I was younger."

"That's too bad," Stephanie said, looking at the board. "Well, our plane is leaving soon, so you know, better start waiting in line so that we can get to our seats quickly."

"Oh, oh yeah, I guess," Kurt said. "I should probably get to my own gate."

"You should probably do that," Stephanie said. "Have a nice weekend."

"You too, Stephanie," he said, completely ignoring Chris as he walked away. Stephanie turned to Chris and ran her hand down his cheek, feeling how set his jaw was. She kissed him from his ear to her chin, seeing Kurt still staring back at her as he walked away. She was glad Chris had his back to Kurt or else Chris might get himself kicked out of the airport altogether. When she didn't feel Chris's jaw unclench, she kissed him on the lips, trying to part his mouth with her tongue, but it was like he had lockjaw and wasn't going to have it.

"Chris, calm down," she told him. "I'm the one who is supposed to be tense, not you."

"He just doesn't get that we know his little game, like we're just going to ignore everything he's said like he didn't hear any of it. Can you believe him? What does he think, that this is all for show? God, I hate him," Chris muttered, shaking his head.

"Chris, please, don't get mad, Monday, on Raw, I promise to you we will challenge him to a match and Trish too, but for this weekend, I really just don't want to think about him. It's going to be difficult enough convincing your parents that I don't have the worst of intentions for you and this isn't a hasty, stupid decision."

"Except it was," he grumbled.

"Hey, hey, hey, none of that," Stephanie said, shaking her head.

"We got married because we both wanted something and it wasn't out of love and my parents will probably see that and call me out on it, then my dad is going to say that he's right and it'll all fall to pieces and-"

"Are you done with your rant?" she asked. "Chris, yes, we got married under…not the best circumstances, but we're obviously in love now, aren't we? Don't you love me?"

"Yes," he answered.

"And I love you and your parents will see that, if we have to smack them over their heads with it, make out at the dinner table, declare our love while watching TV, we'll do that so they can see that you are in very good hands and you _are_ in very good hands."

Chris took up her hands and kissed the palm of each one. "I'll agree with that."

She smiled at him. It was all going to be okay. She hoped. She didn't know exactly how everything was going to turn out, but she loved Chris and that was what mattered. She figured his parents were just wary that she might be using him. The thing was, how and why would she use Chris? It wouldn't be for the money, she made enough to support them both and had enough in shares to make sure they never worked again. This was a billion dollar company she owned. Chris could give her nothing she didn't already have except love and acceptance. She wasn't out for anything, they would have to see that.

She was wringing her hands when they were waiting for to deplane. His parents were going to be waiting right outside this gate, hell, they were probably there right now, ready to embrace Chris and deign her with ugly looks of suspicion. Chris was partially standing up, as much as he could with the overhead compartments in the way. They were in first class, but the back of it and some lady was trying to maneuver her bag down and it was holding everyone up.

"Stephanie, we're moving."

"I think I'll just stay here," she told him.

He laughed and pulled her up, pushing her into the aisle as she grabbed her carry-on stuff from the overhead compartment. Their big suitcases had to be checked so they'd need to go to baggage claim, but that was the least of her worries. Chris let her go ahead of him and he took her carry-on case and carried it for her as she shouldered her purse and walked up the jetway. She had seen pictures of Chris's parents from their house, but seeing a picture and a person were different. Chris grabbed her hand as they got into the terminal and he scanned the crowd. He finally spotted them and almost dragged Stephanie over.

"Mom, Dad!" he yelled so they'd see him. The two of them turned and Stephanie's immediate thought was that Chris took after his dad. Chris went to them and hugged his mother tightly while she hugged him back. Chris went to shake his father's hand and it was tense at best. She hung back as she waited for Chris to introduce her. He took her over a moment later, wrapping his arm around he waist. "Mom, Dad, I'd like you to meet my wife, Stephanie McMahon-Jericho. Steph, these are my parents, Ted and Loretta."

"It's so nice to meet you," she said politely.

"It's nice to meet you," his mother said graciously, looking at Chris and widening her eyes, impressed with just how beautiful Stephanie was in person. If nothing else, her son had good taste looks-wise.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Irvine," she said, holding her hand out.

"Yes, you as well," he said gruffly, shaking her hand. "We've got to get going, I don't want to pay for another hour of parking."

"Ted," Loretta chastised.

"I'm just saying." Ted started to walk ahead of them, not bothering to look back. Loretta looked at them apologetically.

"I'm sorry for the way he's behaving," Loretta said, "it's not your fault, Stephanie, he's just in a mood."

"I understand, it's fine," Stephanie said, shaking her head.

"For what it's worth, I'm very much looking forward to getting to know you," she said, "anyone who my son thinks is good enough for him is certainly good enough for me. I didn't let him go off when he was 19 without a good head on his shoulders."

Chris smiled, "Thanks, Mom."

"And your father will learn to love her," she assured them. "Now let's go get your bags."

"I like your mom," Stephanie whispered to Chris as they were walking.

"By the time this weekend is over, they're both going to love you."


	43. Chapter 43

A/N: Thank you muchly for the reviews, enjoy the chapter, review if you want, thanks. :)

* * *

Chris's childhood home was as cozy as she figured it would be. Chris being an only child meant that the majority of pictures featured him and she liked the glimpse into his past that it gave her. Understandably, given the circumstances under which they had gotten married, she didn't know too much about his childhood. He'd said it was a happy one and that despite not having any siblings, he had plenty of cousins around him that he never truly felt like an only child and had even learned to play well with others.

Loretta ushered them in from the cold and Chris stamped his boots on the mat just inside the door and looked around happily. Stephanie had never seen the look in his eyes before, but she recognized it. It was the look one got when they were home, really, really _home_, the place where you grew up, the most familiar place on the planet. There was such an ease in his face that she kissed the corner of his mouth quite unexpectedly. He smiled down at her before helping her off with the winter coat he'd made her pack and for good reason; it was freezing up here and she'd certainly needed it.

"I like your house," Stephanie whispered to him.

"You've only seen the entryway," he joked.

"It's a nice entryway," she said, "maybe we should just hang out in here."

"For the whole weekend?" He gave her an incredulous look and she shrugged. He kissed her softly before he pulled away to pull off his own jacket.

"Why don't you two come into the living room so we can talk," Loretta said, ushering them into the other room. Chris grabbed Stephanie's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze as they sat down on a loveseat that was facing a couch that Chris's father was sitting disinterestedly on. Loretta sat next to him and smiled at the nervous couple. "So tell me about the wedding? I'm so sad that I wasn't able to be there…"

"Apparently our son can't inform us of major life events," Ted muttered and Loretta swatted at him.

"Shush, Ted," she said, turning back to the couple.

Chris turned to Stephanie and she shrugged and let him take the lead on the matter. "Well, I guess it just all kind of happened so sudden. I mean, I met Stephanie and I guess, I just saw that she was different from every other woman I'd ever met in my life." He glanced over at her and she was blushing slightly. "She just had this passion for life inside her that I felt was being suppressed."

"I was engaged at the time," Stephanie said, deciding to come clean. His parents probably already knew it if they even so much as glanced at the shows and she felt like if she didn't address it then it meant she had something to hide. "His name was Andrew and well, I guess I just felt like my family could never see the real me. Chris was the first person who could."

"So you thought marriage was the way to go?" Ted asked condescendingly.

"I understand that it was quick," Stephanie said, looking to Chris to stop from floundering. "It's not that we didn't want to include everyone…I mean, we just…I didn't want to…_we_ didn't want to-"

"We didn't want to wait," Chris jumped in for her. "I love Stephanie. I love her." He looked over at her and she looked at him and his eyes were piercing her in a way that made her squirm a little in her seat. "Haven't you ever had that feeling, Dad? That feeling where you just know that you're meant to be with this person? Didn't you feel that with Mom?"

"Don't bring your mother into this," his dad said. "I don't support this marriage. You jumped into something without even thinking about the repercussions."

Ted got up and huffed his way out of the room. They all listened as they heard the garage door open and then shut. Chris knew he usually went out there to work on something when he was angry. He could see Stephanie visibly deflating and he squeezed her hand again, giving her a bit of his strength. She had been so hoping that his dad would turn his opinion around. With her own strained relationship with her parents, it might have been nice to have someone on their side.

"I'm sorry for him," Loretta said with a slight nod of the head. "He means well, I promise. He just…he's very set in his ways and I think the marriage came as a shock to him. At least you're not pregnant, right, or else he really might flip his lid."

"No, I'm not pregnant," Stephanie said. "Chris and I want to wait a little while before we settle down with kids. We feel like we have a lot of stuff left to do."

"I understand, I was the same way," she said. "So the wedding, was it nice?"

"It was…quick," Chris said. "I mean, we did it in Vegas, but it wasn't like we were drunk. We weren't drunk when we did it. The video was just that, a video to freak out her parents, but we didn't get drunk and then wake up the next morning married."

"Chris came to me one night," Stephanie said, knowing she was going to pretty up the story for his mother and maybe a little for herself as well. It was difficult thinking about the true origins of her relationship with Chris when their relationship was so deep now. "He told me that he wanted to marry me. I was understandably shocked as Chris and I hadn't really interacted romantically. We didn't cheat on my fiancé, it was nothing like that. It was just this mutual attraction and he came to me and I realized I wanted it."

"But if you'd never even been on a date," his mother intoned, "if you'd only spoken casually, I'm not sure how you get to this point."

"I'm not entirely sure either," Stephanie said with a short laugh. "I just knew that it felt right. Should I have been completely honest and upfront about it, yes, I should have, but this isn't a business relationship or anything, this is a _marriage_ and I'm very much in love with Chris."

Chris grinned. "Actually, Mom, one of the things we were going to tell you while we were here is that we're going to have another wedding, a _real_ one this time. We're going to do it right, with the dress and the tuxes, flowers, a reception."

"You are?" his mother said, brightening.

"Yeah, we realize that we hurt a lot of people by running off and getting married. We want to give something to our families. We didn't want to take the moment away from you, but it was something that we felt we needed to do at the time. Now we're ready to have you all join in it."

"I would love that," Loretta said, her eyes getting a bit blurry. "I always wanted to be at your wedding and when I found out you were married…"

"I know, Mom," Chris said, getting up and going over to hug his mom. "I just want you to know that I am really happy with Stephanie."

"Well, as long as you make each other happy," Loretta said, beckoning Stephanie over. She took Stephanie into her arms and gave her a hug. "I'll speak to Chris's father, but I guess now would be as good a time as any to welcome you into the family."

"Thank you," Stephanie said genuinely, hugging her mother-in-law.

They were laying in bed later that night, Stephanie folded into Chris's side when he heard her sigh. He didn't say anything, letting her be the first to speak, but he ran his fingers through her hair as if to let her know that he was still awake. Dinner had been a bit terse, with Chris's father glaring at Chris every time Stephanie looked away from the table. Stephanie wasn't stupid though and could feel the tension in every part of her body.

"I never knew a marriage could be so bad," Stephanie finally said with a self-deprecating laugh.

"You mean our marriage is bad, huh?"

"No, not our marriage, but the fact that we _did_ get married," Stephanie answered, "I guess we just didn't think hard enough about the people that we were affecting. I just wanted the power when I was with you, I was seduced by your pretty words, but then you hardly ever think about the real world consequences of your actions. Did you see the way your mom reacted when we told her we were having the second wedding? She nearly started crying. She was so happy and we took that away from her."

"I know we didn't really think about the after, but I like the after I have with you," he told her. "And I'm sure once we do the wedding thing a lot of things will blow over, especially the stuff with my dad. I think he just wants to make sure this is real."

"It's not like I'm some ring rat."

"Well I think he knows that," Chris laughed. "God, if I married a rat, I think my dad would just go ahead and disown me. But that's not the case. We're in love and what my dad thinks is really irrelevant to how it relates to us. He'll see how in love we really are and he'll change his opinion and if he doesn't, he doesn't."

"You're right, as usual," she told him. "And maybe it'll ease the edges off my family too, since they're being well…with my brother…"

"Your brother is a tool," Chris said. "He just doesn't like that he can't control you anymore. He was able to get Andrew under his thumb eventually and he liked that. In some ways, he's worse than your dad."

"You think so?"

"I know so," Chris said. "I mean, look at the way he's still treating you. He knows that when you're with me, you're your own person and he hates it. So let him hate it, we run the company now, well, you do as I look on proudly and he hates that you just jumped him for the power."

"So you're saying you think my brother is jealous or something?"

"Absolutely. I mean, look at how buddy-buddy he's been with your dad and his entire stupid posse. He was probably plotting to take over the company from your dad and now he's pissed because you did it first and did it in a better, more clever way. He probably only thought of the show and you thought of the entire company."

"You had something to do with that too, you know," she reminded him.

"I'm just a wrestler with a journalism degree, you're the businesswoman."

"You give me too much credit."

"And you don't give yourself credit enough."

"Thank you," she said, turning her head a little press a kiss to his chest. "I get the feeling you were trying to say something about my brother though, do you suspect he might be up to something?"

"The way he was at your family dinner like he was? I absolutely think he's up to something. I think he wants to take over from you. I think he's trying to find another way to power. I wouldn't be surprised if he was trying to find something that would make you seem incompetent to the board. Then he'd go to the board and try to take over."

"Do you have anything bad in your past that would be detrimental to me? Secret wives? Children? Steroid use?"

"None of that," he assured her. "But I think he was at your parent's house to check us out. Just dropped by, my ass. He even had all his friends with him. No way was that not planned to be some sort of scouting thing. He wants to take over for you, hell, he probably wants your parents not even involved at all. He's a weasel."

"I know it," she told him. "I'll have to keep my eye on him. I have to keep my eye on all of them actually. My family is so screwed up."

"In case you haven't noticed, my family isn't a peach."

"Still, they're not trying to take over your company…but I do think if there is something going on with Shane trying to take over, we have to root it out."

"How do you suggest we do that?" Chris asked.

"I think it's time we met with the posse."


	44. Chapter 44

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and the kind words, I really appreciate that you took the time to read and review. I hope you enjoy the chapter and reviews are welcome. :)

* * *

Business thinking aside, at least for the weekend, Stephanie was going to try her damnedest to make Chris's parents like her. She wasn't a gold-digger so she at least had that working for her. She guessed the biggest point of contention was that they hadn't waited to get married, but under the circumstances, how could there have been any kind of wait in the first place? They'd rushed into it, not just by anyone's standards, but their own standards as well. They knew that and they didn't need to be reminded or reprimanded for it.

"You're very pretty," Loretta commented to her while Stephanie was drinking some coffee in the kitchen. Chris had decided to go for a brisk jog, keep up his cardio before he started on the old weight set that was still sitting in his room collecting dust. Stephanie had come into the kitchen for a late cup of coffee, the first two cups not settling her nerves.

Stephanie wasn't sure how to respond to that. She was used to getting compliments, real or otherwise, but she felt there was more at stake here, with Chris's mother, her mother-in-law. "Thank you."

"My son has always had good taste when it came to girls," Loretta said, sitting down across from Stephanie. "He's never brought one home that I didn't like."

"I'm guessing I should take that as a compliment," Stephanie said nervously.

"I don't hate you, Stephanie, maybe I'm just confused as to the decisions that my son has made in regards to you and your marriage, but I never hated you. In fact, if you are the person that my son loves then I want to get to know everything about you. I like to think that my son has chosen a person he sees himself with forever and if that's you, then I want to know you."

"I would like to know you too," she said with a sigh of relief. At least _someone_ was on their side in this. It was getting awfully lonely facing the world by themselves with nobody to back them. "You're Chris's mother and I know you're important to him."

"I just want to know why you felt like you had to go through with the wedding so soon? I get being impulsive, I really do, but I don't get this. I don't get how you went from being engaged to one man to being married to another in so short a span of time. I'm aware that my son has his charms, but it still just seems too quick."

Stephanie looked down at the mug of coffee and contemplated telling someone, _anyone_ the truth as to the nature, the _true_ nature of her relationship with Chris. She wanted desperately to tell someone how it felt to really fall in love with Chris, how kind and caring he had been, how he'd been nothing like she expected. But on the other hand, this was his mother and would she be crushing her views if she said the truth?

"Loretta, if I can call you that," she added quickly, suddenly feeling the urge to address her formally.

"Of course you can."

"Please don't hate me," Stephanie said, looking up and giving her the most earnest look she could muster, biting her lip to tamp down this sickening feeling of being exposed. She had never bared her soul to another person before Chris and while she wasn't baring everything to his mother, she knew she was coming very clean with her.

"Like I said, I don't hate you, I really don't and neither does Chris's father. He's just disappointed because he wanted better for Chris, that's all. I think his father was set on a wedding, as strange as that sounds. You see, Ted and I, well, we didn't exactly have our own wedding. We just decided one day to get married and that was that, we went down to the courthouse, got our license, and we were wed that same day because there was no waiting period on the licenses at the time. It was all so…quick, we didn't have time to enjoy it and I think that Ted wanted something else for Chris and maybe he's a little mad at Chris that he robbed that from you because Ted has always felt like he robbed a wedding from me."

"Did you ever have a second one?"

"We had a small renewal on our 25th anniversary, but it was nothing big or anything like that."

"I want the real wedding. I'm doing this second one right," Stephanie said, "I'd love it if you could help me with it. My own mother…well, we're trying is all I can say right now. They were very put out when I took over the company and my parents are just starting to come around, but my brother is still angry with me."

"I can imagine," Loretta said sympathetically. "My parents were pretty mad as well, but they eventually got over it."

"Yeah, I've been reaching out to my mother because I missed her. I confess that this second wedding is partly because I wanted you all to be there with Chris and I and then partly because we had a chapel wedding."

"I saw…"

"I wasn't drunk when it happened, when I got married, Chris wasn't either, it was a conscious decision by the both of us and we _did_ talk about it."

"You were engaged to someone else, were you with my son at the same time, is that what happened? That could also contribute to Ted's anger. I mean, I hate to say it, but adultery is not something we condone."

"We didn't have an affair," Stephanie said, "which is I guess what I wanted to tell you…I don't know how to say anything, I don't want you to think less of me or Chris."

"I don't think that could happen, whatever it is, you can tell me, we're family now and I don't know how your family works, but my family is usually very close-knit, once Ted gets off his high horse, I think he'll start to realize his son did _very_ well for himself. I mean, you're beautiful, successful since I know you're running that entire company, and you have to be intelligent to do so, so I'm thinking you're quite the catch."

Stephanie blushed, "Please hold onto that thought."

"Okay, I will hold onto it, now what's this…you're pregnant?"

Stephanie's eyes widened, "Oh no, no, no, I'm sorry you got that impression, but no, that's not it at all. Chris and I, while we want kids, we want them in the very far future, I'm not even 25 yet and that's when I always said would be the very least age I'd have a child and Chris is fine with that, so no, no baby."

"Okay," Loretta laughed, "I'm sorry, don't mind me, I don't want to appear too eager about that, I can wait to become a grandma."

"Thank you," Stephanie said, "but what really happened between Chris and me and our marriage isn't exactly how we've wanted things to come off as."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that Chris and I got married because we both…we both thought there would be mutual benefits from marrying one another. It was a business decision. Chris came to me one night while I was on my bachelorette trip in Las Vegas and he offered me something I wanted—to be free of my family. They controlled me, they made me into the girl they wanted to see and not the woman I wanted to be. They held me under their thumb and then they were going to pass me off to Andrew. Chris was the only person who could see the real me. He challenged me and bugged me and…he was _so_ annoying. I remember I was reading one time and he came up to me and he snatched my book away and I was so mad and he kept trying to tell me I wasn't like I was and I didn't want to believe him, but he was right, all that time and he was the only one who could really see me."

Loretta listened diligently as she took in her daughter-in-law's story. "So it was a business decision, you say?"

Stephanie nodded, "He was going to help me take over the company, grab the power from my parents and take over. In exchange, I was going to help him get the WWF Title. He had never been given the chance in WCW, which I'm sure you know since you're his mom, but he wanted to get to the top here and he wanted that in exchange. We figured that getting married was the best way for both of us to come out on top and that if we pretended to be married, a united front then we'd get all the power in the world."

"Well, I'm glad to see my son takes marriage so lightly," Loretta muttered.

"It was both of us, really, not just him. I was part of it too. We staged that wedding and then I was going to go to my wedding with Andrew and we planned the entire reveal, everything was just part of the plan…"

"So you're acting right now then? This is all an act?" Loretta said, gesturing around her at some invisible explanation that was floating around. "You want to dupe everyone and the second wedding is what? Just a way to further prove you aren't liars?"

"No!" Stephanie insisted. "Chris became my best friend. I moved down to Florida to make us more believable…"

"So you're friends?"

"No," Stephanie interrupted. "It became more…we became more. I fell in love with your son and he had already been in love with me and I _love_ your son. I love him more than I thought I would, that's for sure, but however the circumstances, I love him now and I want to be with him. The second wedding is partially for us because I want to start right with him. I want to start a real life with him and I want everyone to know it."

"Hey, there's my girl," Chris said, coming into the kitchen and grabbing a water from the fridge before he came over and kissed Stephanie on the cheek. "You treating her okay, Mom?"

"I told your mom everything," Stephanie said, glancing up at Chris.

He nearly dropped his water as he looked at his wife. "You told her everything? Like _everything¸ _everything?"

"Well, not about how I think my brother is trying to steal the company right out from under me, but pretty much everything else."

"About the…arrangement?" Chris said pointedly.

"She told me you two were a business deal waiting to happen when you got married," Loretta said, looking at her son disapprovingly.

"Mom, I can explain…"

"I told her I fell in love with you though," Stephanie said, grabbing Chris's hand and making him kneel down next to her chair. Chris looked over at Stephanie as she kissed his cheek. "I thought she should know. I mean, we can't tell my parents for obvious reasons, but I thought your mom could know because well, she's your mom, I thought she would understand, but I told her how much I love you now."

"Mom, I love Stephanie," Chris said, turning to his mom. "I love her more than anything, this thing here, between the two of us, it's real, the two of us are as real as you and Dad. I'm sorry that we started off so poorly, but I love Stephanie."

"I believe you," Loretta said. "I believe the both of you."

"You do?" Chris said.

"I can tell by the way she talks about you," Loretta said, jerking her thumb towards Stephanie. "But I am going to want to have that second wedding because I want to see the two of you get married. Also, what's this about your brother trying to steal the company from you?"

"We think he's jealous that I got the company before he did. I suspect that he's been trying to come up with a plan to get the company before I swooped in."

"And he thought that he could control you when you were with Andrew, is that right?"

"He didn't like Andrew at first, but then Andrew was such a pushover that Shane came around on the idea of me marrying him and they actually became friends. I should have known then that my brother was up to no good."

"So this marriage was the worst possible scenario to him?"

"Yeah," Chris said with a scoff, "he certainly has no trouble telling me that every chance he gets."

"So you want to prove that he's doing something to take over the company from you, to steal it back?"

"Pretty much," Stephanie said.

"Then I want to help," Loretta said.

"Mom?"

"Anyone who messes with my family…messes with me."


	45. Chapter 45

A/N: Thanks, enjoy, review. :)

* * *

"Your mom is amazing."

"I'm glad you think so," Chris said as he ran his fingers through Stephanie's hair, lightly massaging her scalp as they cuddled in bed. Stephanie quickly found out that Ted didn't like to leave the heat too high at night, instead opting to use multiple quilts to keep warm. Stephanie was so used to living in Florida now that she usually wore tank tops and shorts to bed or even less sometimes. The difference was jarring enough that she was swimming in Chris's clothes and clinging to him for warmth.

Chris had no problems with the arrangement; having Stephanie close was never a problem for him. In fact, he liked it even more now. It was nice to have someone on their side and it was even better that the person on their side was his mother. It also felt nice to have someone know his history with Stephanie. Their dynamic had changed so much since they were first married, but it was still a big part of who they were now and having his mom know was a godsend to him.

"I could have told you that," he told her smugly. "She's always been pretty amazing."

"I don't know, it just felt so natural talking to her. Even at the best of times, I don't know, I guess I never felt that level of comfortability with my own mother. I don't think I could ever tell her how we really started."

"I don't think I'd want her _or_ your dad to know if we're being honest," Chris chuckled, staring up at the ceiling and thinking about how Vince would react if he knew that his only daughter had married someone out of some twisted business deal. "For the rest of our lives he'd believe that I was only with you because of what you could do for me."

"And we couldn't have that," Stephanie teased. "Then he might just stare at you every time we go over there…assuming that our lives ever really get back on track. I mean, I have my parents who are trying, well, my mom is trying, my dad is still up in the air and a brother who wants to undermine me. Then you have a dad who's mad at you."

"My mom said she'd talk to him," Chris interrupted, "and when my mom wants to accomplish something, she can. I think it's from all the time my dad spent away when they were first married and when she had me. My dad didn't retire until I was school age and my mom could lay a guilt trip on him like nobody's business. She'll do it this time too and then when he wises up, he'll see I did pretty well for myself."

"Because I'm cute?"

"Among other things," Chris told her. "If he ever even got the chance to hear you talk, he'd know that you were amazing. And why shouldn't he like you? He should know from his years of being on the road that the only women you encounter on the road are women that want something. He had my mom waiting back here and knew she wasn't with him for the fame. He should see that this is the same thing. If I were to be with some woman, the threat of her using me is always on the horizon, but look at you, you run an entire billion dollar company! You make _way_ more than I do."

"This is true."

"So he can't complain because I didn't settle for whatever scraps happened to be on the road."

"You didn't."

"He'll see it and if he doesn't, I'll force him too. He'll like you, I think my mom was right about the entire wanting to see things better for me."

"Well, your mom offered to help me with the wedding and that should be a great help…I do have to wonder though what she's got up her sleeve about Shane. She sounded pretty ominous when she was talking with us earlier."

"If I know my mom, she's cooking up something awesome."

Indeed, the moment that Chris's father left to go meet up with some friends (a tactic to avoid Stephanie and Chris to be sure) Loretta was sitting Chris and Stephanie down at the dining room table for a strategy session. Stephanie stared wide-eyed at Chris across the table and he shrugged his shoulders a little because he had as little clue as to what was going on as she did. Stephanie tilted her head towards his mother, who was sitting with her elbows on the table and her fingers tapping against her lips.

"Okay, so what we have to do is get Shane to admit that he wants to take over the company," Loretta started and she looked to both Chris and Stephanie. "If we can get an admission from him, I think it becomes much easier to oust him."

"I don't necessarily want to fire him," Stephanie told her. "He's still my brother and I'm more than happy to keep him on, I just don't like the way he's acting and I want him to know that I'm the one in charge now."

"That's fair, though I think he should rot for trying to help put my son in jail."

"We don't really know that he was in on that," Stephanie said, hating that she had to defend her brother, but they really didn't know if Shane was in on that or if Andrew was acting alone. "But I'm all for making him pay for trying to take over when it's not his place."

"Well, if we get him to say that he's been trying to take over or catch him in the act of it all, then it becomes clear that he's been trying to pull the rug out from under your father and you gain a valuable ally. As I see it, you want your parents back?"

"Well, yeah, I do want my parents back," Stephanie said. "I do want to be a family again or at least something close to it." Chris reached across the table and grabbed her hand. Loretta smiled at the gesture. Hearing that her son had married for the title had been a little alarming, but she was noticing all the little gestures between her son and his wife and it assured her that their feelings were real.

"What did you have in mind, Mom?" Chris asked.

"It's like this, I think that you two need to start showing some cracks in your relationship," Loretta said.

"Cracks, Chris and I are happy," Stephanie interjected, looking to Chris and giving him a loving smile. "There aren't really any cracks, I mean, we fight, but all couples fight and we usually don't let the fights last very long."

"Not long at all," Chris beamed at her and she beamed back at him and Loretta almost felt like she'd need some sunglasses.

"I'm talking about acting," Loretta said, "you act like there are cracks in the relationship and maybe make it look like Stephanie is being taken advantage of. This way, Shane sees what he thinks is an opening and from what you've told me about him Stephanie, it seems he suctions onto anything he thinks can give him the power he wants."

"That does seem to be his MO," Stephanie nodded, "at first, he didn't like that I was with Andrew, but when it became clear that Andrew was going to be part of the family and that he might have some modicum of power, Shane was sidling up to him. He likes to have friends in high places. He hates the guys in his stupid posse, but all their fathers are somebodies and because of that, Shane keeps them around."

"Your brother sounds like such a rat," Chris commented, shaking his head at the kind of scum he was related to. "Why can't he just be happy for you?"

"Because he hates that I'm even in the company," Stephanie said, "I think he figured that because I was a girl he was just going to automatically run things, like I was going to be some housewife or do some other outside job that wouldn't take me to the company and it certainly wouldn't mean I'd be _running _it."

"Well then he has another thing coming to him," Loretta said, "now show the cracks and he'll try to take you under his wing if I know anything about it. If he knows you have the power, he's going to try to sidle up to you because now you have it and then he'll probably try to pull the rug out from under you."

"How do you know about this so much, Mom?"

"I've dealt with people," Loretta told him in a very Mom-like "it's really none of your business" way. Chris kept his mouth shut after that and just let his mother speak, "When this happens, you can reveal that you've known all along and maybe do some humiliating since you're the one in charge."

"It would certainly put him in his place," Stephanie said.

"Plus, it makes you look smarter because you were the one who came out on top and that will look good to the Board of Directors, wouldn't it?"

"You're right," Stephanie said. "I know that Shane wouldn't dare go to them because he knows they voted to have me take over in the first place and this way they can see that I'm the real deal and I know how to rein in my family."

"Works all-around, doesn't it?" Loretta asked smugly, sitting back in her chair and folding her arms. She looked a little like Chris when she did that.

"Actually, it seriously does," Stephanie said. "Thank you so much, Loretta, you have no idea what this means to me that you'd be willing to help me like this."

"You're my daughter now," Loretta said, leaning forward and clasping Stephanie on the shoulder. "This is what I do for my child and now children because you're part of this family now. I think my son is crazy about you."

"Mom," he blushed, ducking his head. Normally he wouldn't be upset with saying that to Stephanie, but this was his mom and it was embarrassing.

"Look at him," Loretta leaned in closer and stage-whispered to Stephanie as they both laughed at their boy. "I think you and I are going to get along just fine, Stephanie, just fine."

She wished it could have gone better with Chris's dad, but they'd made little headway by the time they had to leave and get back to work. Loretta promised that she'd continue to work on Ted, but that he would be fine once they held their second ceremony. Then he would get the wedding he envisioned for his son and see the seriousness of his marriage to Stephanie.

When they got back to work that Monday, they walked in without holding hands and they made a show of just walking side-by-side silently, as if they were fighting or on the outs. It didn't go unnoticed because of the scowls they'd decided to wear on their faces. The whispers as they passed were fast and furious because they'd been under the microscope since the moment they'd revealed their marriage. The slightest hint of discontent and the gossips were off and running. Chris could only imagine what kind of crazy gossip they were saying about the two of them.

"Later," Chris said shortly as he detoured to the men's locker room, which would surely get even more voices hissing to others in this wicked game of telephone. Chris hadn't used the men's locker room since he'd been married to Stephanie so using it tonight would further illustrate a rift between husband and wife and if the rumors of how they'd come into the arena didn't reach Shane, the fact that Chris was not using the same room as Stephanie was sure to get to him eventually.

Now they just had to wait.


	46. Chapter 46

"Hey, what's up with you and Stephanie?"

Chris looked up and fought back his smirk. Instead he gave Edge a rather confused look, "I have no idea what you mean, care to explain?"

"Just, you're in here," Edge said, gesturing around the men's locker room. "You haven't been in here since you and the broad got married. Still don't know why you did that. Of course, I'm engaged so it's not like I'm…never-mind, what are you doing in here?"

Chris continued to lace up his boots, "A guy can't come and be in the men's locker room." He was trying to act evasive, like something really was going down, but he didn't want to let anyone in on it. He thought he was doing a fairly good job because Edge was looking at him angrily.

"Dude, come on, we're friends, right?"

"Sure, we're friends," Chris said, though they weren't exactly the best of friends. Chris had known Edge and Christian briefly from his wrestling in Canada and running into the tag team at various stops in their homeland, but he wouldn't call them best friends. Friends was still applicable though so he didn't say anything to negate Edge's statement.

"So what's going on? Trouble in paradise?" Edge took a seat next to Chris and patted his shoulder. "I mean, the way you guys got married, that's…did you really expect it to be all good?"

It _was_ all good and for a moment, Chris was tempted to say so. It slightly bothered him that people were going to assume that things weren't right between him and Stephanie when things were so right. He knew that it would work to get Shane to confess what he was doing or at least show outright that he was trying to snatch the rug from right out under Stephanie, but it still hurt a little bit. He and Stephanie already projected fakeness to everyone they came across.

Nobody trusted their relationship. Sure, the two of them had never really given any reason to totally believe in their relationship given the start of their marriage and they couldn't outright say things had changed, but Chris knew things had changed and it bothered him that nobody else could see that they were serious. He was as serious about Stephanie as he possibly could be. Sure, the marriage had been a farce at first and he'd be the first one to acknowledge that if it ever came up in a court of law, but he loved his wife and he wanted people to know that he was deeply committed to her.

"Why wouldn't it?" he said instead, hoping the tone conveyed what his words couldn't.

"I don't know, I just…the whole drunk aspect of it, how you kind of stole her from the guy she was going to marry, that whole situation. It's not exactly the stuff dreams are made of."

"Who are you to criticize how we got together?" he snapped, then amended himself, "I'm sorry, you're absolutely right, I mean, not about the stuff dreams are made of thing, but I guess the way we started doesn't exude love, huh?"

"Not really," Edge said, "so really, man, what's going on, is everything okay with you and Stephanie? You seemed okay there for a while, but this, hanging out in the men's locker room, snapping over the littlest things, it's not really you."

Showtime.

"I don't know, I guess you just think things will go one way and then they don't," Chris sighed, acting like the weight of the world was on his shoulders.

"What's going on?"

"I don't know, I mean, I know," he said, "but…when I first married Stephanie, even before, I guess I saw her as some kind of challenge in a way. I was new here, I saw an opportunity to make a big splash and I couldn't help but take it. I _had_ to."

"Do you…did you want to be with Stephanie? I mean, the way it happened…"

"Stephanie is…look, I don't want to talk about it," he shook his head, like it was just too painful to speak about and that there was something seriously wrong with their relationship. Edge sat there for a minute, not saying anything, but seemingly letting Chris be with his thoughts.

"Maybe it's just a rough patch," Edge said sympathetically. "You guys didn't seem to really know each other before you got married, you're probably just in that phase that normal couples make where they find out the little things that bug them and they learn to live with them. You guys just don't have the benefit of going to your separate places because you're married so you share your space."

That was remarkably astute coming from Edge of all people. If he and Stephanie were really having problems, that would probably be a really good explanation for them. He recognized the fact that he and Stephanie were really lucky when it came to their marriage. A lot of times, it would have degraded into something petty and hateful, but he and Stephanie had a lot in common and what they didn't have in common, they had learned to tolerate.

"I'm going to head off."

"Yeah, sure," Edge said. "If you need to talk, you know that you can talk to me."

"Thanks, man, I appreciate it," Chris said, but he knew that the second he turned around Edge would be gossiping with someone, probably Christian. Then Christian would tell someone else and then it would be all over by the end of the night. There was no way that Shane wouldn't know there was supposed discord.

Chris smugly walked down the hallway, but he managed to keep his smugness inwards and not draw too much attention to himself. People were looking at him though and he wondered if the news had already traveled, but how could it? He'd _just_ stopped talking to Edge, unless someone was eavesdropping, but he hadn't seen anyone else in the locker room. Maybe Stephanie had talked with someone who had already spread the news. That was a distinct possibility. He made his way to her office and, keeping up appearances, threw open the door and then let it slam loudly behind him. He startled Stephanie and she jumped from her seat and snapped her eyes up to the door.

"Oh, it's you, I thought it was my brother for a second," she laughed and then stood up, walking over to him and embracing him, just letting herself hold him for a few moments. "There, now I feel much, much better."

"Why, what happened?" he asked, holding her to him. "Everyone was looking at me on the way here from the men's locker room, did something happen with you while we weren't together?"

"Oh, I just happened to talk to Trish after we separated at the door, you know, looking all pissed at each other. She almost pounced on me. She's obviously waiting out the relationship because she's lusting after you," Stephanie said with annoyance. "She came right up to me and asked if there was trouble in paradise. Of course, she made it look like she was being sympathetic, but of course she was just being a fake like she usually is."

"Don't worry about her."

"I'm sure her lips were flapping in the wind as soon as I was out of earshot."

"Again, don't worry about her."

"She's going to put designs on you if she thinks we're on the outs, I shouldn't have told her that it was nothing in that snotty tone that I have that really means that there is something going on. I really shouldn't have done that. She's probably getting her sluttiest outfit together as we speak, oh my God, she's probably trying to sneak into our hotel room so she can be waiting there, in lingerie or a nightie or whatever it is that's supposed to be sexy. God, I don't even know what's supposed to be sexy and you probably think that I'm so plain because I sleep in a tank top and shorts and sometimes not even my shorts, but _your_ shorts and geez, I probably look like a boy!"

Chris squeezed her against him, "Breathe, Steph, breathe, okay. There's no need to get worked up. Hotels aren't just going to let random people have keys to other people's rooms-"

"If the guy at the desk is, in fact, a guy, then she'll probably flash him and then she'll just get her way," Stephanie said.

"Even then, they'd get fired if I were to complain about it and I don't think they would put up their job for a little boob flashing."

"But I bet she has really nice breasts," Stephanie said, "I mean, comparatively speaking."

"I like your breasts, they're natural, they're beautiful, hers are as fake as they come," Chris told her, "and it's good that she's got loose lips because the news is probably spreading straight to your brother and that's exactly what we want to happen."

"I know, I'm worried over nothing, right?"

"Yeah, always," Chris told her, kissing her forehead, "but I find it endearing so you just continue worrying like you are, okay?"

"Okay," she said, "how's it been going on your end?"

"Great, I talked to Edge and I suspect that if the word hasn't gotten to everyone backstage via Trish, that it will soon get to them via Edge."

"Good, the important thing is that Shane thinks that he has an in and then we crush him like a bug," Stephanie said, her voice ending on a vindictive note. "He's just so damn bitter that I got what he wanted first. You know, I _should_ get back in my parents' good graces and invite them to be partners with me, even give my dad some of his duties back and then give Shane nothing to do, eke him out."

"You know that what you choose to do, I'm behind you."

"I know," she told him, hugging him tighter if that was even possible, "I love you."

"I love you too," he told her, "don't forget that, okay. I'm not a superficial guy. I'm not going to say I don't have eyes and can't recognize that other women may be pretty or beautiful, but I'm not all about looks. I'm not with you because you look good. From the moment I saw you, I knew there were all these gears rusting behind those gorgeous gray eyes of yours and they needed to be oiled and in use at all times."

"You were the only one that saw that in me."

"Fools, everyone, fools!" Chris cackled and Stephanie giggled. "I better get out of here though, any longer and people might start to think that we've made up or something and we can't have that. How do you think I should leave? Should I yell at you or just storm off, obviously mad?"

"You need to yell, but nothing about what we could potentially be fighting about, just yell something like, 'Fine!' and then storm out and make sure you slam the door again and maybe you can curse under your breath a little."

"You've thought too much about this," he told her, kissing the tip of his nose before moving down and covering her lips with his own. "Okay, I'm about to put on the acting performance of the century!"

Chris walked to the door and threw it open, "Fine!" he screamed and then slammed the door. He muttered under his breath while stalking down the hallway, pushing past people left and right, acting like they didn't matter to him and anyone who got in his way would feel his wrath.

"See, what did I tell you," Pete Gas told his friend, Shane McMahon. "They're totally on the outs. She's probably so caught up in her relationship she's not even running the company or nothing." Shane nodded and smirked. He did see.

And in his sister's vulnerable state, he was going to take what was rightfully his.


	47. Chapter 47

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, sorry for the long delay, I've been feeling kind of stuck with this story, but I'm trying to push my way through it, so if it sucks, apologies in advance, but I hope you enjoy it! :)

* * *

"Why the hell wasn't I doing _that_ for years?"

Chris laughed as he rolled off of Stephanie and laid down on his back. Stephanie grabbed his left hand and then squealed as Chris used his strength to pull her over to his side. She curled up into him and then threw her bare leg over his as she sighed. Chris ran his fingers through her hair as she grabbed his right hand and played with his fingers.

"Probably because nobody could measure up, figuratively speaking, unless, well, you know, they really _didn't_ measure up if you know what I mean," Chris joked and he smiled as he heard her breathy laughter against his chest. Her hair was messy, knotted and he gently wove his fingers through the tangles so it fell flat against the pillow.

"I don't think we need to have _that_ talk," Stephanie told him, pressing a kiss to his chest, "It's all irrelevant now anyways."

"Yeah," he smiled at her words. After fighting all evening, pretending to fight at least, they'd needed some kind of physical release and he wasn't about to turn his wife away when she'd pressed his back against the door. He wasn't a crazy man after all.

Their plan had worked perfectly and they were both ecstatic about it. They'd left separately, keeping up appearances, Chris asking for a ride from Edge and Stephanie taking their rental back to the hotel. They'd both heard whispers about them as they'd passed. It was exactly what they'd wanted. Now, they just hoped that Shane got wind of it and came up to Stephanie or Chris and offered to talk or plot or do something that could implicate him or out him for the little bastard that he was.

Chris was about to lean down and kiss Stephanie again when there was a knock at the door. Why was there always knocks on the door? He guessed that it was because he and Stephanie were in charge, but that didn't mean they ran a 24-hour store. They didn't have revolving doors and they couldn't solve everyone's problems. Chris pressed his finger to his lips and Stephanie nodded. He pulled on some boxers, noting that he should get cleaned up after he talked to whomever this was. He looked through the peephole and sighed. Stephanie had been right.

"What can I do for you, Trish?" Chris asked as he opened the door. He ran a hand through his hair and laughed at how messy it seemed. That's what you get when you're rolling around the bed like he and Stephanie were.

"Oh, I'm sorry, were you asleep?" Trish asked, blatantly ogling him. While she was doing that, he took in her appearance. She had changed from what she was wearing to the arena, but it wasn't any better than it had been.

"Yeah, I was, I'll see you later," Chris started to shut the door, but Trish put her hand against it and tried to step inside, but Chris prevented her entrance. "Trish, it's really late and unless this is business-related, I'm going to need you to leave."

"I just thought you might want to talk. I heard from someone that heard from Edge that said you were kind of in a rough place with Stephanie and she didn't seem to happy either and I just wanted to make sure that you were okay. I know that being on the road, it's hard to have someone to confide in and I know the guys aren't very sensitive, at least from what I've seen, so I wanted to offer my shoulder as one you could cry on."

"I don't cry," he said succinctly.

"But it can't be easy to have your life in shambles."

"Nobody said my life was in shambles," he said, then thought that he might as well further the plan. Trish was here, she'd obviously been involved in the gossip and it was the perfect opportunity to do so. "I mean, you know, never-mind, you don't want to hear my problems."

"Oh, but I do," Trish nodded, biting her lip. "Anything you need, you know that I'm here for you, anything that you need…"

"I appreciate that, Trish, I really do," he said then sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck while Trish checked out his abs (at least he hoped she was checking on his abs! He looked down and was glad to see he wasn't sporting wood from his previous encounter with Stephanie. The last thing he needed was Trish thinking she aroused him. "But I'm really tired right now."

"Are you sure? I can stay, we don't have work tomorrow and I can stay and we can watch TV and hang out and everything. I just want to talk to you and make sure that you're okay. I mean, from what I understand, you and Stephanie didn't even date, I mean, just marrying her out of the blue like that, it had to take its toll on you, am I right?"

"Yeah, it does take its toll, sure," Chris said, "but I can talk about things later, when it's an appropriate time and in an appropriate setting."

"Oh, I just thought you might not want to broadcast it and that your room would be a good place to just talk things out."

"It's not," he told her, "I'll talk to you later, Trish, thanks for stopping by."

"Oh, well, um, okay, yeah, bye," she said as Chris pushed her out the door. He went back into the bedroom to see that Stephanie had fallen asleep on him. He laughed and climbed into the bed, pulling the covers over the both of them, which made Stephanie stir.

"Hey, you're back."

"Hey, go back to sleep," he told her softly.

She yawned and stretched, "Was that Trish I heard?"

"Yeah, that was Trish, trying to barge her way in here so I guess she could jump my bones or something," he told her, "I wasn't exactly clear on her intent but I think the skimpy dress really got the point across."

"Skimpy dress?" Stephanie asked, looking up at Chris a little more alertly.

"She thinks we're having problems, so this was her way of making sure that I was doing okay with everything," Chris rolled his eyes.

"Chris?"

"Yeah?" he asked, scooting around the bed a little trying to get comfortable. Maybe, if Stephanie wasn't too tired, he could entice her with a shower before bed.

"Um…" Her voice trailed off and he felt her tense beside him. He tilted his head a little so he could see her clearly and she was biting her lip and twisting a strand of hair around her finger.

"Is everything okay?" Chris asked. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just," she took a deep breath and then laughed at herself, which just made Chris even more curious as to what was running through her mind then. "Okay, um, the whole…well, us in the bedroom, this, you know, us making love and everything, it's…it's good for you, right?"

"Excuse me?" he asked, shaking his head. "Are you asking me if the sex is good?"

"I'm asking if I'm any good. I mean, you've been with women before, I know you said it wasn't too many, but still, you've been with more experienced women and well, Trish is pretty experienced and she dresses skimpily and it's like, guys…like that right? Would you like it if I dressed you know, more sexy for you?"

Chris let out a sound of incredulity before he jostled his way down the bed until he was face to face with Stephanie. He was about to make a joke about the entire question when he saw Stephanie's face full on, instead he said, "This actually worries you, doesn't it?"

"Well, yeah, I guess it does a little. I just hear that Trish is trying to seduce you and there are a lot of women who find you attractive and I'm…so plain and everything," Stephanie said, "I didn't even know I wanted power or anything until you came along. I dressed like a little girl before you came along and you have the pick of everyone and I make you happy in bed, right? Because if I'm doing something wrong or not…pleasuring, please tell me and I'll get better."

"Steph, you're cute," he told her, "adorable, really."

"Adorable is not sexy."

"Adorable _can be_ sexy," he explained to her. "I'm happy with you, in bed, out of bed, wherever we are, I'm happy with you."

"Are you sure?" she wondered.

"Of course I'm sure," Chris said. "Stephanie, sex is not this competition. You're not competing against the women I've slept with before. That was in the past and I thought that you know, all that…uh, you know, we just did, I thought I gave a pretty clear impression of how much I liked it."

"Yeah, you did seem to," she said coyly.

"Now would you care to join me for a shower because I think the both of us could use a little cleaning up because we've both been really, really dirty," he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and she blushed a little bit then nodded. He grinned at her and leaned forward, pressing his lips to her. He didn't attempt to deepen the kiss, but pulled away and got off the bed. Stephanie was about to get up as well, but Chris grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder as she screamed and slapped his back. He didn't put her down until they got to the bathroom.

Trish knocked on Shane's door. He answered almost immediately, which startled her. He must have been waiting for her. She gave him an enticing grin, but all he did was grab her by the upper arm and drag her into his room. "Did anyone see you?"

"Of course not and who cares if they did? It's not like you aren't my boss. A girl can come see her new boss," Trish said, sitting down on the couch. She noted that Shane was alone, which was a first. Usually he had his little posse hanging around. Shane sat next to her and she eased herself over to him, leaning over and kissing his neck. Shane pushed her away. "What?"

"We don't have time for that."

"You're alone, it seems like we have time," she placed her hand on his neck, but he pushed her away again. "What is your problem?"

"What happened? Was she there? Did you go inside, did you talk to him, what happened? Is his marriage falling apart?"

"She wasn't there, not as far as I could tell. He was asleep when I came over-"

"Not as far as you could tell? What does that mean?" Shane asked.

"It means I didn't get inside, he wanted to go to bed, but he admitted that things were kind of rocky and I offered, a bunch of times, to help him through it and come inside and talk to him, but he wouldn't let me. I don't think he likes me very much," she pouted, hoping it would get the reaction she wanted.

It did as Shane touched her cheek, "Who wouldn't want someone as hot as you?"

"I don't know."

"You'll just have to work on him harder. I want you to work on him and get caught by Stephanie. It's the only way I can totally ensure that they're away from each other. Then I can come in and be the good big brother and she'll have to sign over the power to me because she'll be too heartbroken not to."

"And I get ensured what I want, right?"

"Yeah, you'll get what you want. I wish you had gotten more for me this time, but I guess it's a start."

"He seemed really upset from what I can tell. I think that's why he turned me away…no, no, I'm sure that's why he turned me away. He just didn't want to do anything he'd regret, but don't worry, I know how I'm going to work on him. I'll just ask him for wrestling tips, that should help."

"That's perfect," Shane said. "You'll have to let me know when you're doing this so I can contact Stephanie as the appropriate moment. She'll never know what hit her."

"Are you sure you want to do this to your own sister?" Trish asked.

"For the company, of course I am."


	48. Chapter 48

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and the reading, enjoy, review! :)

* * *

"So you know what to do right?"

Trish brushed off her breasts, like there was some dust on it or something. She looked up at Shane coyly, her smile just turning up the sides of her mouth as her brown eyes gazed at him intently. "Of course I know what I'm doing," she told him. "It's not rocket science, Shane. I think I know how to seduce a man."

"I'm sure you do," he told her, his eyes traveling up and down her body. "I'm sure you do…"

"You like what you see, don't you?" she said, taking a step closer to him. She liked Shane. Was it as much as she liked some of the other men she'd been with in the past? No, but Shane could offer more, so much more. She knew what he was worth, everyone did, and she would be lying if she said the money wasn't appealing. Trish's family had never been rich, but they hadn't been poor. Still, they were not billionaires and when she looked at Shane, dollar signs flitted through her head.

"Can you blame me?" Shane asked her.

Trish giggled a little bit and then took another step forward, getting even closer to Shane. She bit her bottom lip before her tongue darted and licked said lip. Shane was staring at her face and she had to appreciate that his eyes didn't immediately go to her cleavage, which was prominent and nearly on full display. She leaned up and brushed her lips against his. She tilted her head to deepen the kiss and pressed her hand to the back of his neck. His hand snaked around her waist and she let herself fall into the kiss. Shane was so easy, but so were most men. They could be manipulated into doing her bidding and she loved it. She loved using herself to get what she wanted. It always worked.

Shane finally pulled away and ran his hand roughly over his mouth. "You've got to find him."

"I will, I will," Trish said impatiently. "There's plenty of time, the show hasn't even started yet. I will find him, it's better if I find him without Stephanie anyways."

"Don't worry, I've got that covered."

"You do?" Trish asked. "How do you have that covered? Do you really think of everything, Shane McMahon?"

"If you want to get what you want, you _have_ to think of everything," Shane said. "I have someone to distract Stephanie and then she'll be out of the room and you will go find Chris and you'll work your magic. If we're lucky, they won't even be here together. I don't really know if they're keeping it up for appearances or whatever, but we have to think about that."

"They probably will because they don't want anyone to know the truth," Trish said with a laugh, "but you can't hide everything and once Stephanie sees me with Chris, she's going to be so pissed and she'll probably never want to see him again."

"That's what I'm banking on," Shane said. "I want to make it so she never wants to see his face again. When I take over, I can fire him or something, I'd take great pleasure in doing that."

"Aww, why would you want to do that though," Trish pouted, "you should just let me have my fun with him. I can still have fun with you too, I'm very open like that."

"I wouldn't want his sloppy seconds, I'm Shane McMahon, I don't settle for second best."

"I like a man who knows what he wants," Trish practically purred, leaning on her tip toes so she could kiss Shane's neck, letting her tongue lave his skin. "I guess it wouldn't be a huge loss to lose Chris. So what if he's champion right now, you can put it on whomever you want to put it on once you're in charge."

"That's right," Shane said, thinking about the power he would have once his little sister's heart was broken. She would never know what hit her because she'd be too busy crying over the loss of her precious husband. Where did she get off even getting married in the first place? He'd gone out of his way to like Test, to think of the man as a non-threat, someone who would keep Stephanie tucked against his side for all time, only to have his sister hoodwink him.

Test would have made the perfect husband for her, someone who was so weak that they wouldn't have threatened his position in the company. He should have known Chris was no good from the moment he arrived. He was brash, opinionated, and grossly independent and he was rubbing off those qualities onto Stephanie. Stephanie used to do what their father wanted, like a good daughter, someone who was just a follower, but not a leader. Whatever Chris had done had made her into something she had never been and Shane didn't like it. He didn't like that she was challenging him for his position.

Once Chris was out of the picture though, things could go back to normal. Maybe his sister would even go back to Test and run off to have a million children and then she would _really_ be out of the picture. He smirked at the thought of her living her life in some house somewhere, far, far away from the business. This was what he wanted. Trish was just a pawn and once he had the power, he would kick her to the curb like the whore she presented herself to be. She was good for an easy lay, but not much else.

"You better get going," Shane said, "I don't want you screwing this up."

"I'm not going to screw it up," Trish asserted. "Stop acting like I'm some idiot. I was in medical school, I'll have you know. I know what I'm doing and I probably know a lot _more_ than you do so stop bossing me around or I will take my services elsewhere."

"Look, I'm sorry, I'm just on edge tonight, you understand, right?" Shane sweet-talked her.

"Yeah, I get it," Trish calmed down. "I guess I can go find him now. Do you think there's been enough time for everyone to settle in so it doesn't look suspicious?"

"I definitely think so," Shane nodded, then kissed her briefly. "Go work your magic, I'll get Stephanie out of the way right now so she won't be there to bother you…if she is there."

"Okay," Trish nodded and set off for her destination.

Chris looked over at Stephanie as she did some paperwork at the desk in their locker room. Her lips were turned up in a serene smile and her face looked clean and bright, her makeup minimal and her hair pulled back in a simply ponytail, a few wisps escaping here and there. "You look like someone who just got laid."

Stephanie giggled as she looked up, "I do not."

"You have that satisfied, 'I got laid this morning,' look. It's okay that you're not familiar with it," Chris told her, "you haven't been with any guys, but I recognize it from a mile away…mainly because I'm the one that put it there."

"Be quiet," she chastised him, "you aren't supposed to say things like that around here, prying ears and all that and I really don't want our sex life broadcast for the world to know, okay?"

"Why not, I think people assume we're having sex, we are married," he pointed out.

"Because we're supposed to be on the outs and it's gross thinking about us having sex," Stephanie scrunched her nose up adorably. "I want people to mind their own business is what I want." Stephanie's walkie-talkie buzzed to life and she grabbed it to listen to someone on the end trying to contact her. "Yes, this is Stephanie, what's the problem, over."

"We needed your approval for some new pyros for the show, can you come down to the ring to see them go off? Over." a production assistant said.

"Of course, over" Stephanie said, turning off the walkie-talkie. "That's odd, I didn't approve new pyros for the show. Well, maybe someone is getting a little industrious."

"It couldn't hurt to change things up a bit," Chris shrugged. "Just to keep the fans on their toes and it could make the show look a lot cooler."

"Good point," she said, pushing herself up from her desk. She walked past Chris and gave him a quick peck on the lips when he turned up to face her. "I'll see you in a little bit I guess."

"Remember to act a little disgruntled now that you aren't around me, like we just had a fight or we're not talking or like you didn't get laid last night and this morning," Chris told her, his eyebrows wiggling playfully as he pulled Stephanie down into his lap quickly. "Do you think you can take that cute smirk off your face?"

"Stop, I won't be able to if you do anything now," she said, trying to pull away from him, but he wasn't letting her budge much.

"Okay, okay, sorry," he kissed her cheek. "Go be the boss."

"I am," she said, blowing him a kiss before she opened the door. She acted grumpy as she stalked down the hallway and it was this visage that Trish saw and she smirked. Stephanie looked downright pissed and this worked to Trish's advantage. She slipped into the women's bathroom and touched up her lip gloss and pulled down her top a little to reveal more of her cleavage before she went and walked straight to Chris's locker room. She nodded quickly and Chris jumped up from the couch and walked over to the door.

Trish lit up when she saw Chris and Chris lit down when he saw her. "What do you want, Trish?" Chris said, trying not to sound annoyed, but when you _were_ annoyed, it was hard to come off as anything but that.

"We never got to finish our talk from last night," she told him with a slight pout, "but that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

"Then what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked, hoping, but knowing that it wasn't going to be a simple yes or no question that would allow him to go back to what he was doing, which was anything that didn't involve Trish Stratus. Her shirt was nearly past her breasts and Chris had to wonder if any man could be so dense as to not realize her intentions.

"Well, I was kind of hoping that I could get some wrestling tips from you," Trish told him. "I know that you're really good and I'm always at ringside with my guys and I figured that in case something should go wrong, I should be able to defend myself, don't you think? I really think that would look good if like, I could actually do some moves because then I'd be more versatile to watch."

"Why don't you ask one of your guys then?" he told her. "I'm sure they would be _more_ than willing to help you out with that. Aren't you working with a bunch of them? I figure they know just as much as I do."

"Oh, but probably not," Trish told him. "I've heard that you've studied everywhere and since you know all those styles, you probably know _so_ much more than them and you could probably offer me some great advice?"

"Why don't you find one of the women to help you, I'm a guy, what I can do and what you can do are two totally separate things. If you're nice enough, Chyna might be able to show you some moves," Chris said, not getting suckered into this if he could help it.

"Still, I just think you would be the best man for the job."

"And I'm telling you I wouldn't be."

"Why won't you help me? Do you_ want_ me to get slaughtered out there?"

"Why would I care if you got slaughtered out there? You're not my valet so why should I care? You have three guys at least who you _are_ a valet to, right? Ask them, they would help you, I'm nothing to you, Trish, nothing," Chris told her, fed up with her behavior.

"This isn't over, Chris," Trish said, stomping out of the room. "This isn't over."

Trish realized it was going to take a lot more to crack Chris Jericho.


	49. Chapter 49

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews, hope you enjoy the chapter, review if you want to, they are appreciated. :)

* * *

"Was it so difficult to do?"

"Yes, it was," Trish said, "You weren't there, you don't know what went on so you shouldn't judge me unless you know what I did. I tried _everything_, but he didn't bite. I don't know what his problem is, I'm hot, no guy just turns me away!"

"Well I don't see you with him right now and I haven't heard that you've been with him so I'd say that there are some guys who turn you away," Shane said angrily, pacing the room as Trish glared at him. "I ask you to do one thing, one goddamn thing and you can't even do that right! What are you, stupid or something?"

"I'm not stupid!" Trish told him. "I'm probably smarter than you are because if you were smart, you wouldn't have let Stephanie take over the company in the first place."

"Shut up!" Shane growled at her. He wasn't about to have some stupid diva telling him he was stupid. He could have her fired…well, he _could_ have had her fired if she'd done her job right. Was everyone around her so incompetent that they couldn't do what he asked? Sometimes if you wanted to do something, you needed to do it himself, but it wasn't that easy this time, there were two people.

"No, I will not shut up. You will stand there and listen to me because you can't fire me because you're not in charge," Trish folded her arms. "You're here calling me stupid like I can't do anything right, but if you had done something right, you would be in charge right now."

"I could still get you fired somehow?"

"How, making nice with sissy," Trish mocked him. I'd like to see you try that now after everything that you've told me has happened. She practically ran you out of the business, how was that by they way? If I were you, I'd probably feel a little humiliated."

"She didn't do this by herself," Shane spat. "There's no way she thought of this herself. She's not that smart to think of this and execute it all herself. She had help from that asshole, Jericho. He's the root of all my problems, which is why I thought _you_ could be the one to get him away from her. Maybe I just need to find another diva who can take care of this."

"I _can_ do this!" Trish told him. "I'm Trish Stratus, have you looked at me? Of course I can do this."

"Doesn't seem like you can given the fact that you haven't. You told me that it would be so easy for you to get him, but I don't see him anywhere near here," Shane gestured around.

"I will, don't worry, by the time this night is over he'll be putty in my hands!" Trish said, storming out of the room. She hated Shane, but if he could get her where she wanted to be, she would just have to deal with him. She didn't take too kindly to people questioning her attractiveness. She knew she was gorgeous and so she'd had one setback in regards to Chris, that didn't mean anything.

"So, since everyone thinks we're not getting along backstage, I thought maybe we should pretend like we're great onscreen and then backstage we act all standoffish so that people onscreen think we're doing okay because we are and then people backstage think things are even worse than they are," Stephanie said, "is that stupid?"

Chris laughed at his wife and pulled her into his arms, "I love your ideas. I think they're always the best ideas in the world."

"I just figure that it would make people confused, it would make my brother confused since he's trying to break us up. I mean, what with that whole Trish thing, like he's not behind that. He's probably coaching her as we speak."

"He's pretty transparent," Chris nodded.

"Yes, so…my other kind of plan was that you make it seem like he's actually getting the upper-hand in all of this," Stephanie said, biting her lip because she wasn't sure Chris would go for this idea.

"What do you mean?" he asked, his eyes narrowing as he tried to understand her point. He knew she wanted to drop the bomb on his brother, but he wasn't sure how far she was willing to go when it came to the plan. He didn't want to kiss someone else, he didn't want to be with anyone else, even if he was pretending.

"Well, you know how Trish said that she wanted to get 'wrestling' lessons from you?"

"I'm pretty sure she meant sex when she mentioned wrestling lessons," Chris told her, "I don't want to go through with that because I'm quite happy with what I have, if that's all the same to you."

"Know, I know, I figure you can just…give her wrestling lessons."

"You want me to teach her how to wrestle?" Chris asked. Now he really wasn't sure where she was going with this. He couldn't see how teaching Trish how to wrestle could possibly benefit anyone at this point. It wasn't like Trish was going to go out to the ring and start wrestling against the men.

"Yes, I want you to teach her, but that's it, just teach her and then I can walk in and be so angry and it'll make Shane think he's winning…or I won't even walk in and then Trish will think she has the upper-hand on me and then she'll act smug and then maybe you do it again and then you get caught and I put her in a handicap match against Ivory and Jacqueline and then we'll see if she wants to mess with _me_," Stephanie said, her eyes brimming with mischief.

"But I if I'm helping her learn to wrestle…"

"Just show her stupid stuff, like a headlock or a hold, maybe something a little bit suggestive so she _thinks_ that you're trying to flirt with her," Stephanie nodded, "which you won't be."

"I wouldn't want to, but don't you think this is, I don't know, I guess shouldn't…well, no, I mean, I guess it could work," Chris said as he thought about it more. "I guess I just don't like the thought of flirting with Trish…or teaching her to wrestle…or being in the same airspace as her."

Stephanie giggled a little bit, her eyes dancing in a way that made her beautiful. "I know, but we have to make sacrifices, right? And I think you'll like the first plan I was talking about and that might make up for the other part with Trish."

"What was the first part of the plan?"

Chris found himself sitting on a rather comfy loveseat on the ramp in front of the Titantron. The crowd had obviously been curious about what the seat meant before the show was starting, but he and Stephanie were greeted with a bevy of cheers as they walked out onto the ramp together. Stephanie positively beamed over the reception. She was so used to getting booed because of her family and her association with them that getting cheered always felt really special, like it could be taken away from her at any moment.

The crowd loved Chris, probably because he had bucked any kind of control and married her, but they liked having him in charge and they liked having him as champion. Even though he wasn't going to be competing tonight, they still seemed to love him just sitting there. She'd announced that they wanted to assess the show as if they were fans, which at the end of the day, they really were and the crowd ate it up. Chris sat down in chair and pulled Stephanie into her lap, kissing her lightly as she smiled into the kiss.

"Do you think Shane is having a fit right now?" she whispered into her ear.

"He should just be grateful that you let him come back," Chris told her and she nodded a little as she gave a smug look to the camera, especially for her brother.

"What the hell does she think she's doing!" Shane snarled as he threw a water bottle against the wall. "I can't believe that bitch of a sister. She thinks she can go around and…"

"You okay, boss?" Pete Gas asked him.

"Do I look okay to you?" Shane asked. "I thought she and Chris were having problems…wait, wait, wait, they must be trying to pull one over on me. God, that's it. They think that by going out there and looking all lovey-dovey that they're fooling people into thinking that they're just great. But you see how they are around here—"

"Yeah, they're always fighting and stuff," Joey Abs nodded.

"Don't interrupt me when I'm talking," Shane told him. "They must think I'm stupid or something. This isn't going to fool me, not one bit."

Stephanie leaned her head against Chris's as they sat watching a match between Mark Henry and D'Lo Brown. "I love you," she whispered to him, which made him smile. "I love being out here with you, just watching the show that we're building. This is ours and we're doing this and I don't know, I feel so accomplished."

"You _are_ accomplished. I knew you had it in you to be the best," Chris told her, leaning in to kiss her again.

The match ended and their private discussions ended when Test started walking down to the ring. He glared at the two of them as he walked past and they knew that meant trouble. Andrew was obviously still not over the events that transpired involving him, Chris, and Stephanie and he was out for vengeance. It helped that Shane had offered him a pretty nice incentive to break Chris Jericho. He was the one who was supposed to marry Stephanie and not that douchebag who'd swept the rug right out from under him.

"Well, look at the happy couple, sitting there like they own the joint."

"I _do_ own the joint," Stephanie said into her microphone. "So I think you should watch your tone to me."

"You know, I don't think I got enough for getting screwed out of marrying Stephanie," Andrew said.

"You never wanted me in the first place!" Stephanie told him.

"Please, I wanted to marry you, didn't I? What the hell do you think that means!" Andrew told her. "That I wanted nothing from you. But now I want something better than a two-timing whore like you, I want the belt and I want it now!"

"Fine!" Chris said, "Fine, I'll give you a match, tonight, you, me, the title, but if you lose, then you won't get another title shot for the rest of your damn career! How do you like that?"

"Let's do it then, the clock is ticking down on you," Andrew threw down the microphone and stalked back up the ramp, calling out insults to Chris as he passed them.

"I guess I better get ready for my match," Chris said to the crowd. He and Stephanie got up and started walking towards the back.

"Follow my lead," Stephanie whispered to him while they were in the dark hallway that led to the gorilla. They passed through the curtain and Stephanie shoved her hand away. "How could you not defend me out there when he was calling me a whore!"

"What? I'm sorry, I had a match that he was trying to get from me, I can't do everything!" Chris said, knowing what she was doing now. "You're not a defenseless, little girl."

"I'm your wife, you should defend me all the time! I swear!" And with that, she stalked off. Shane was nearby, watching this all unfold as he had sent Andrew out there in the first place. After the arresting incident, Andrew had been too quiet. The man should have been more obstinate and Shane had made sure to tell him just what he could get out of this now that it seemed Stephanie was on the outs with Chris. If Shane had his way, his sister would be reuniting with Stephanie very soon. If everything in the match worked perfectly, which was sure it would.

Shane thought his plan was perfect.

It wasn't.


	50. Chapter 50

A/N: Whew, 50 chapters, I did not think this story would go this long, I'm not even sure how I wanted to end this story at all to be honest. I guess I'll just see where this takes me. Thanks to everyone who's stuck with this story and for all the reviews, very grateful, hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"I still can't believe you actually want me to go through with this."

"There's not much to it, really," Stephanie shrugged as she concentrated on painting her pinky nail. "You just pretend like you're going to show her a wrestling move and I walk in, simple as that."

"I don't really want her skanky hands all over me," he said in distaste, shuddering for comedic effect. She laughed at him, but he just looked at her. He couldn't help it though, when her eyes danced like that, he was simply forced to laugh along with her. He walked over to where she was sitting on the bed and leaned down to kiss her. "What if she tries something? What if she tries to slip her hand down my pants or something?"

"Then I'll kill the skinny bitch," Stephanie said in a bright tone, but behind it was malice enough to carry out her thoughtless plan. Chris backed away slowly, holding his hands up in surrender. Stephanie laughed again and moved onto another finger. "The cameras will be there, I doubt she'll be trying anything like that."

"I think you underestimate how much of a slut she is," Chris said, "I mean, we're pretty sure she's sleeping with your brother, right?"

"Don't get me started, Chris," Stephanie said, "because that thought it just disgusting, and I'd rather not think about who or who isn't sleeping with my brother."

"I'm just saying, she has to be, I wouldn't be surprised if she went…no, you know what, I'm not even going to go there."

"Go where?" she asked. "Where were you going?"

"Nothing, nowhere," Chris backed out of the room and into the bathroom. "I'm just going to go in here and I don't know, take a shower or something like that."

"Get your butt back in here," Stephanie said, crooking her finger at him. Chris slowly walked back into the room, "where is your head at, Mr. Jericho?"

"I'm just thinking, and please don't hate me for this, what if…what if it's not just…well, what if it's not just your brother she's sleeping with…"

"Oh, eww, Chris," Stephanie gagged, "That's disgusting, but my father wouldn't do that, at least not now, not after everything that happened with my mother and before…he wouldn't…it just wouldn't make sense either, with him being at home."

"Okay, okay, I was just commenting on how slutty Trish is, I wouldn't put it past her to try," Chris said, "hell, I almost wouldn't put it past her to try and sleep with you since you're the one running the show now."

"She's not my type," Stephanie joked.

"Are you sure? You do seem to be into long-haired blondes," he told her, smirking as he winked at her. Stephanie pretended to weigh her options.

"You know something, you may be right," Stephanie nodded slowly, "I guess I might go try that, I never did get a chance to explore my wild oats in college, what with all the sex I wasn't having."

"No, you're not getting out of my sights," he said, flopping next to her on the bed, making her squeal as she pulled the nail polish brush from her hand. He ran his hand up an down her thigh, leaning over to kiss the bare skin of her leg.

"So possessive," she told him.

"Well, yes, because I love you, and because your brother is trying so desperately to screw you over, and I'm not going to let that happen. I'll be damned if I let that dick take over what is rightfully yours," Chris told her fiercely and she loved him just a little bit more for that. It deserved another kiss so she leaned over and gave him one. "Thank you, but are you sure you want me to go through with this Trish plan?"

"Of course I do, it's not like I don't trust you," she told him with a casual shrug of her shoulder. "I think my brother will eat it up too. He'll absolutely think that everything is not as cozy as we're projecting it to be, it really is the perfect plan, kill two birds with one stone."

"How would it kill Trish so to speak?" he wondered. "She'll think she got one over on you."

"Good, I hope she does think that," Stephanie told him. "I hope she thinks she has you right where she wants you. That'll make it all the more sweet when we catch her."

"I like you when you're vicious, it suits you," he told her, "I knew it the moment I saw you, you know. I knew you would be this challenge. You tried to act all innocent, just sitting there, reading your book, like you were some studious, perfect angel, but all it took was a few words and the real you came out."

"You pissed me off, thinking you were God's gift to the company," she rolled her eyes. Chris leaned up and kissed her on the cheek, making her smile slightly.

"Wasn't I though?" he asked her softly.

"Don't get cocky again," she told him, "besides, I can see where you want this to lead, but it's nearing noon and we've got to get to the show early today. We run the place now, if weren't not the first people there, it reflects badly on us."

"Since when?"

"Since I'm not in the mood to tumble into bed with you," she said, getting up and walking into the bathroom, sticking her tongue out before closing the door on Chris. He could hear her laughing through the door and he smiled to himself. He didn't want to brag, but he couldn't see her being this happy with Andrew. He didn't think that guy could ever really make her happy, not like this.

He carried that thought with him when they got to the arena. They "pretended" to put on a happy façade when they walked in, holding hands, but they put on the phoniest smiles they could, smiles that looked so fake someone could spot them like a bad toupee. This way, people thought they were faking their closeness belying the cracking veneer of their relationship. Every now and again, Chris would squeeze Stephanie's hand, just to let her know he loved her and she would squeeze it right back.

When they got to their locker room, they staged a mini-fight, just loud enough that anyone passing by could hear them. They acted like Stephanie forgot to pack Chris's wrist tape while he got mad at her. If people were indeed hearing them, they expected the news of their fight to pass like wildfire through the backstage area, eventually getting to Shane, lulling him once again into a false sense of security with his plan.

Next, Chris had to execute phase two of their dastardly plan. He left Stephanie with a kiss before wandering the hallways trying to look for Trish. He came across Trish's locker room and knocked tentatively, looking around nervously like he didn't want to be caught here. Trish answered the door a second later, scowling, but then relenting when she saw it was Chris. Chris noticed she actually started to stick her chest out and he was forced to hold in laughter at her unsubtle behavior. She was so obvious. Stephanie was so sexy without even trying, but Trish had to practically force her breasts in his face.

"Chris, hey, I wasn't expecting to see you," Trish told him, "this is a nice surprise."

"Yeah, I figured you'd like it," he winked at her, trying to act as smarmy as possible.

"I do," she flirted back. "What did you need?"

"I was actually thinking about those wrestling lessons you wanted," he leaned in the doorway. "I know you want to improve and I really have to commend you on that. I wanted to offer my…services to you."

"Services?" she asked, biting her lip in what she must think was a sexy way, but it looked too staged and obvious. Maybe everything about this girl was just that obvious.

"Yeah, I was hoping I could show you a few moves," Chris leaned in a little closer to her, "you know, some holds, take-downs, maybe even some pins."

He knew he was laying it on thick and it was almost hysterical to him that she was buying this. How dense did she have to be not to see through him? This was not how he acted, not anymore, but she'd never known this part of him. Before Stephanie, he might have tried to act suave, like he knew what he was doing, but he didn't. Now with Stephanie, he didn't have to try to impress women anymore, he had a woman who loved him, weirdness and all.

"I would love that," she said breathily, "when can we start?"

"Stephanie has a lot of work to do, so once the show starts, why don't you come to her office and we can get started," he told her, thinking about how surprised she was going to be when all he offered her were actual wrestling moves. He could see the wheels turning in her head, probably thinking about what positions she wanted him in.

"I'll definitely be there," Trish said, "wild horses couldn't keep me away, but…uh, what about Stephanie, don't you think she'd mind?"

"Whatever, she'll be busy, she won't even know," Chris scoffed. "Believe me, I know what I'm doing."

"Then I'll see you later," Trish brushed her hand along his shoulder. "See you, Chris."

"Later, Trish," Chris winked at her one more time, just to seem extra smarmy to her before he went back to his locker room, thinking about his job well done.

As soon as Chris was out of her eyesight (she was peeking through the door at his back), Trish raced to Shane's office, throwing it open and then stopping short when she saw him on the phone. He looked at her, annoyed she would just barge in like that. Trish waved her hands at him, telling him to get off the line, but he still took a few minutes.

"What is it?" he asked irritably. "I thought I told you to take a hike last week when you couldn't deliver."

"Well, I just came to tell you that you're wrong, so wrong," Trish told him defiantly. She wasn't going to take Shane's crap anymore. Chris _wanted_ her, and when this was all over, she was going to have him. Stephanie would be back where she belonged and Chris would want _her_, and rightfully so, Trish knew she was so much prettier and sexier than Stephanie McMahon.

"What are you talking about?"

"Chris and I," Trish said, "well, we are going to be meeting later where he's going to teach me some wrestling, if you know what I mean."

"Wait, he said he was going to sleep with you?" Shane asked, his eyes brightening instantaneously.

"No, not in so many words, but believe me, he wants me. Things aren't great with Stephanie, he didn't even care what she thought about it. Plus, he wants to meet me when Stephanie isn't around. He probably wants her out of his life. This is the opening I was looking for and he took it. Now…I believe _someone_ didn't want me around anymore because I was ruining the plan."

"What do you want?" Shane asked.

"I want what I had coming to me," Trish said. She knew there was a part of Shane that really liked her and, hey, if she could have Shane _and_ Chris at the same time, there was nothing wrong with that. Shane could give her things Chris couldn't and why not take advantage of that while she could.

"You want back in then?"

"If not, I'm not going to do a damn thing with Chris," Trish lied because whether Shane took her back or not, she was going to have Chris. "Then Stephanie will stay with him and she'll never be under your thumb again, and you'll have to answer to your _baby sister_ for the rest of your life."

"Fine, fine, fine, you win," he said, standing up from his chair and walking over to her, cupping her cheek. "You know you drive a hard bargain, Miss Stratus."

"I just get what I want, Shane," she leaned up to brush her lips against his. "Everything I want."

"You're not getting everything you want until you deliver_, really_ deliver, do you understand?"

"Don't worry, I've got a date with Chris and I have a feeling it'll be a good one."


	51. Chapter 51

"You sure you're ready for this?"

Chris cupped Stephanie's face in his hands, framing her between his palms. "I'm sure, Steph, I really don't mind. It'll help you get one over on your brother, and that's the important thing here. You remember that you have to come in, right?"

"Yes, I remember," Stephanie said, "I'll hang around until I see Trish go in, I'll wait five minutes, then I'll barge in and freak out."

"Okay, good, don't get distracted though," Chris told her, pretending to be threatening by narrowing his eyes at her. "Because if you get distracted and you don't come in, I'm in a world of trouble because Trish will think I'm really into her, and I'm not about to have another woman hanging off of me."

"Oh, like you don't like me hanging off of you," she teased him back and he leaned forward to press a kiss to his lips. "Was that for luck since I'll have to act like I'm pissed at you?"

"No, that was to preserve my dignity after what's about to happen," he told her with a crooked smile. "I had to have something to tide me over before I throw myself into the black widow's web."

"My poor guy," she patted his cheek. "It'll be okay, when this is all over, my brother _and_ Trish will look like a fool. And we'll be back in control, and hopefully my family will realize I'm not a child and they'll actually start treating me like an adult, and then we can all be one big, happy family."

"You think we can all be one big, happy family?" he asked her incredulously. He tried to conjure up images of barbeques in the backyard with the McMahon family, with everyone laughing and joking around, and somehow, someway, the picture just didn't seem to be happening. He wasn't entirely knowledgeable about the McMahons, but he didn't see this happening.

"There was a time, it seems like so long ago now, that we _were_ a normal family," she said wistfully. "You'd be surprised by how much my parents were there for me growing up. I know it seems like they weren't, but they really were. My mom and I used to cook _all_ the time, she taught me everything I know."

"That's actually really sweet. I would love to really get to know your family," he told her, "and I want you to be happy. I mean, at the end of the day, I don't really know too much about your family beyond what I've seen on TV and the few times I've really been around them."

"They're much better than they're appearing right now," she sighed, "well, maybe not Shane, but my parents are. I just think my dad always saw me as his little girl, I think that by giving me off to someone like Andrew, someone who was so intent on just taking care of me, it was a reassurance that I'd be taken care of, but then I didn't do what he wanted, and I think he was just hurt by it all."

"I can understand that, I mean, it's not like we got together under the best circumstances. Your family knew, hell they _know_, next to nothing about me, about us. I can see where their hesitation would kick in," he told her. He knew that they were not a couple because they had met, dated, and fell in love, they'd gotten married, then dated, then fell in love. He just wanted Stephanie to get everything she'd ever hoped for. He wanted to be the man to do that for her as well.

"It will come in time," she nodded, speaking to herself mostly, but her words warmed Chris because they assured him of a future with her. "They'll learn to love you like I do. You're wonderful, Chris, they'll see this, maybe even Shane will see this…someday…in the far future."

"We can dream big," he kidded with her, seeing the sadness permeating her eyes. He didn't want her to feel sad that her family was so disjointed. But yet, here they were, about to make it look like there was trouble in their marriage, all to get her brother off her back. He was the one insisting on taking things too far, and Stephanie felt she had no choice but to show him how it wasn't going to work.

"My parents will never believe how strong we actually are," Stephanie said, but then realized how that sounded. "I mean, I just want them to see how strong they are. I want them to see that we're for real, we're not just this couple who doesn't love each other."

"They'll see, everyone else will see too, if they don't already, I mean, they might not, what with the whole fighting thing we're doing right now, but they will see," Chris told her. "So you better go if this is ever going to work. You have to make it look like you're actually working."

"Good luck," Stephanie told him. "Make sure her lips don't get anywhere near yours because I'm not going to let that girl live if she kisses you."

"Vicious, I love it," Chris gave her one last kiss for good measure and Stephanie flitted out of the room.

She walked purposefully down the hallway, exuding all the confidence she lacked in the past. She couldn't attribute all her confidence to Chris, but he had a knack for bringing it out of her. There was something so magnanimous about him, and it fueled her own confidence. She was good at her job and she knew it. She was proving it every time she made a decision regarding the business. She didn't necessarily want to be _feared_, but she wanted to be respected, and Chris was bringing that demand out of her.

She actually passed Trish on the way there and she held her chin high, throwing the blonde a little look. Trish just gave her a smug one back, and the blonde thought she was actually getting one over on the brunette, but it was the other way around. Stephanie had her right where she wanted her. It was just too bad that Trish didn't know what kind of trap she was falling into, but she would know soon enough. Stephanie could picture matches upon matches where she humiliated Trish, and she liked the imagery.

Trish scoffed to herself as Stephanie walked past. She walked around here like she was the shit, but Trish knew better. Trish threw her hair over her shoulder and sauntered down the hallway. She wasn't going to see Chris just yet, even though her limbs were aching to run over to his locker room and pounce on him. She had to play this cool. Sure, he was gorgeous and she would not hesitate to jump into the sack with him, but first she had to execute Shane's stupid plan.

Chris sat back against the couch, his eyes closed as he just took in his surroundings with his other senses. He could hear people walking and talking past the door, but none of them came in. It was relatively quiet, but he appreciated the sounds outside. He'd never figured he'd be here when he entered the company. He almost never believed he would be the WWF champion, let alone married to Stephanie, and sometimes he really needed to take a moment to be thankful for everything he had.

Additionally, he had to psych himself up for what was about to go on. He had to pretend he was actually attracted to Trish, which would be a feat in and of itself. She was a pretty girl, he couldn't deny that, but she was vapid, and that was such a turn-off, not that he was looking for a women because he loved his wife.

Stephanie, unbeknownst to Trish, was watching the other woman to see when she was going to go to Chris. It took her about twenty minutes, but finally, she started walking down the hallway towards where she knew Chris was waiting. Trish eventually reached the door and knocked. Stephanie smirked. She was falling right into the trap.

"Come in!" Chris said when he heard the knock.

"Hey, Chris, are you alone?" Trish asked though she knew he was.

"Yeah, hey," he said, "you look beautiful." She could not have been more obvious if she came in here naked. She was wearing an extremely form-fitting tank top that pushed her breasts up near her chin and boy shorts that hugged everything, leaving little to the imagination. If he liked streetwalkers, he would have been attracted to her.

"Oh, thanks, I don't, but thank you," Trish said, smoothing her shirt down over her abs. She tried to appear humble, but she knew she looked damn good. "I just wanted to come see if those wrestling lessons were still an offer. I hope they are because I'm just dying to get in the ring."

"All you had to do was ask," he said flirtatiously, standing up and walking over to her. "I bet you're going to be great in the ring."

"With you as a teacher, I don't see how I couldn't be," Trish bit her lip and gave him a coy smile. "So what do you think you could teach me first, some kind of hold maybe? I know that's kind of your thing…"

"Sure, we can do that," he told her. "Here, why don't you stand in front of me?"

"Okay, you got it," Trish said, standing in front of him.

"Now turn around," Chris instructed her. She did as she was told, throwing him a look over her shoulder, her hair brushing against her face as she looked at him expectantly. Chris stepped up right behind her and held her around the waist, resting his hands lightly on her hips. "Okay, I'm going to hold you, and I want you to try to get out of it as fast as you can. I just want to see what you can do."

"I hope I won't disappoint," Trish told him, her voice lowering. Chris rolled his eyes as he wrapped his right arm around her waist and he grabbed her left arm with his left hand, twisting it behind her back.

"Okay, you can try to get free now," Chris told her.

Trish pushed her entire body back against Chris, pressing her ass against his crotch as she half-heartedly tried to get herself free. Chris just looked a the ceiling as she kept wriggling herself against him, even letting out breathy groans as she tried to get free. Chris held her a little tighter and pulled her body back against his. Trish seemed to respond to this, pushing back against him.

"I can't get out, Chris, you're too strong," Trish told him, glancing up at him with a pouty look on her face that was as fake as her breasts.

"Well, here, let me show you how to get out of something like this," Chris told her, knowing Stephanie was going to be coming in any minute. He bent Trish over a little bit. "Okay, what you need to do is—"

The door slammed open, nearly coming off its hinges. "What the hell is going on here!" Stephanie yelled, a camera crew right behind her. "What do you think you're doing with my husband!"

"What, he was just—" Trish said, standing up, but really making no move to leave.

"I was just helping her," Chris told Stephanie, letting of Trish.

"Helping her with what!" Stephanie screeched, grabbing a wayward vase and throwing it against the wall. "Get the hell out of here! How dare you, how dare the two of you do something like this, get out of her, Trish Stratus!"

"I'm gone," Trish scurried out of the room as Stephanie glared daggers at Chris.

"How dare you!" Stephanie said. She turned to the cameras and shoved them out of the room. "Get out of here, I don't want to see anyone right now, out, out!"

"No, I'm not going anywhere!" Chris said. "I wasn't doing anything!"

"Oh, not doing anything, you just had Trish bent over in front of your for kicks and giggles? Is this what you do when I'm not around, huh? What is it, Chris, you just couldn't keep your hands to yourself!"

"Don't accuse me of things you know nothing about!" he yelled at her as she slammed the door in the camera's faces. "You don't get to do that!"

"You don't get to have your arms wrapped around another woman!"

"I'll do what I want!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!" Chris said as he walked closer to Stephanie and kissed her soundly on the lips. "How did I do?" She grinned at him, giving him another kiss.

"You were perfect."


	52. Chapter 52

A/N: Thanks for the reviews and sticking with this increasingly long story. Hope you enjoy the chapter, reviews would be very much appreciated so why not leave one! :)

* * *

Trish practically skipped to Shane's locker room. She'd played her part to perfection, and if things went her way, she would have Chris. She thought about having Chris and Shane both hanging off her every word. She liked the idea. She knew Shane had been indifferent to her at first, but after what she'd just done, he had to want her more than ever. She wanted him to want her.

Shane was rich, and rich was something good, actually, it was something great, and something she very much wanted. Shane was pretty good-looking too. He wasn't on par with Chris, but that's why she would have Chris too. She could have the best of both worlds, Shane's money and Chris's undivided attention. It was pretty clear Chris and Stephanie were headed downhill, not that she thought it would end any other way. Shane had told her briefly about how they hadn't even really been together before they were married. How could any relationship last like that?

"Did you see what happened?" Trish asked excitedly as she walked into Shane's office. "I was perfect, don't you think?"

"You were okay?" Shane said blandly, as if distracted by something else.

"Are you kidding me?" she scoffed, wondering if he had actually watched what just happened. Stephanie had a film crew with her, they _had_ to be taping, everyone had to see it, there was no way Shane hadn't. "I was great, did you see their blowup?"

"Yes, I saw, and it was fine."

"Fine?" Now she was getting angry. How could he be so flippant when she'd done exactly what he asked? Not only had she done what he asked, she'd done it with such success she wouldn't be surprised if Chris and Stephanie announced their divorce next week. "Just fine? I don't think so, they were pissed off at each other."

"Yes, they were," Shane nodded.

"And that's exactly what you wanted," Trish said, "I did exactly everything that you wanted."

Maybe there was some other tactic that would break this seemingly frigidness. Trish walked around Shane's desk and ran her finger across his back, letting it linger on his shoulder. Shane still seemed distracted so Trish pushed his chair back and took a seat in his lap, leaning forward and pressing her lips to his neck.

"Trish, what are you doing?" he asked.

"Trying to loosen you up," she told him, grabbing his tie a little and forcing his head down as she tried to kiss him. He moved his mouth away at the last second and she frowned. "What is _wrong_ with you? You wanted me to go to Chris, and make sure that Stephanie saw us and got the wrong idea. That's exactly what I went there and did."

"I want them to break up, when they break up for good, that's when I know you've done your job right," Shane told her coldly.

"Well, unless you're _blind_, Shane, you would have seen that they're practically already there," Trish countered, mad that her contribution was going largely unnoticed. Shane was supposed to be worshipping at her feet for helping him.

"But they're not there yet," Shane argued back. "I need him completely out of her life. I need the old Stephanie back."

"I don't even know who the old Stephanie was," Trish said for lack of anything better to say in that moment.

"She was a pushover. She didn't have this…I don't know, bold streak in her," Shane frowned. "She did whatever me and my dad told her to do. She never even questioned anything. And she was supposed to marry Andrew. She was supposed to marry him and go live with him, and let me take over everything."

"Maybe that was never her," Trish said. "Maybe she was never supposed to be that person."

"What do you mean?"

"You were shoving her into this box, but maybe she was never meant to be in it. Whatever, Shane, I've done my job. Stephanie is angry with Chris, and I doubt she's going to forgive him now."

"You don't know that."

"You don't know that it won't work either," she got off of him. It was obvious he wasn't going to return her affections tonight. She would just have to try another time. Shane was worth hundreds of millions; it wouldn't be that hard to give him up considering the motivation of all that money.

"Get out of here, Trish, if you manage to break them up tonight, then you can come back here," he told her.

"Don't order me around, Shane," Trish told him angrily, "I'm not some pawn for you in your game. If I wanted, I could tell Chris and Stephanie exactly what you're doing, so I don't think you want to get on my bad side."

Shane hadn't considered that and he looked up at her, trying to act contrite. "I'm sorry, you're right. I am glad that you're helping and hopefully this can all be over soon. I just want what's rightfully mine. Stephanie shouldn't have snatched it right out from under me."

"That's better," Trish told him. "Don't worry, if I know my own tricks, and I do, the two of them will be well on their way to Divorce Court soon enough."

Chris laughed as Stephanie danced around their bed later that night, eating some ice cream. "You're absolutely nuts, you know that, right? I mean, I thought when I got you to marry me without ever even having a normal conversation with me was pretty crazy, but now I just see that you're crazy all the time."

"I'm sorry," Stephanie said, "I'm just glad that everything worked out. Shane probably thinks we're calling up our lawyers right now. Oh, I can't wait to see his face when I drop the bomb on him. He's going to freak out, I just know he is. He's going to be so angry, but you know what, I won't even care."

Chris just laughed a little more at her, "I'm going to enjoy seeing him taken down a few pegs too."

"And the look on Trish's face, did you see it?" Stephanie giggled, sitting down next to Chris and offering him a bite of her ice cream. He let her feed her and smiled his thanks. "She looked positively petrified, but I think on the inside, she was probably acting so smug, like she thought she was really winning. She's so easy."

"Yeah, she is," Chris said, just enjoying how happy his wife was. He liked seeing her happy. He just liked her. He was finding more and more that he was really willing to do just about anything to keep this smile on her face. When she was happy, he was happy. She was so tied to him now, so ingrained in his system.

Stephanie sighed and laid down next to Chris, putting her empty bowl of ice cream on the nightstand next to her. She grabbed Chris's hand, which was chilled from holding her bowl, and she gave it a squeeze. "What are you thinking right now?"

"What kind of institution I'm going to have to put you in pretty much," he confessed with a wink. She laughed and turned so she could cuddle up to his side. "I'm thinking of one with gardens, but then they might give you garden shears—"

"Stop," she pinched him in the stomach. "All of this is going to be over soon, and then my brother will have to go lick his wounds back in Connecticut. Maybe I can really publicly fire him, like my dad so loves to do, that would be funny."

"I want to be in the ring when that happens," Chris said, his phone ringing. He grabbed it from the nightstand and he looked at it, but it was a number he didn't recognize. "Hello?"

"Chris, hey, it's me, I hope you don't mind me calling this late, but I just wanted to apologize for what happened earlier and see if you were okay," Trish said. Chris pressed his finger to his lips to let Stephanie know she had to be quiet and she nodded silently.

"Trish, that's really sweet of you to call me," Chris said, laying it on thick as he rolled his eyes at his wife. She covered her mouth so she wouldn't giggle and he gave her a look that only made her want to laugh more. She sat up so she had a little bit of distance between the two of them so if he made her laugh, she could make her great escape.

"I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

Stephanie's phone buzzed from her pocket and she plucked it out, standing up and away from Chris, walking into the other room. It was her mother, and she furrowed her brow. "Mom?"

"Stephanie, oh, I'm so glad I caught you, I was afraid you'd be asleep," Linda said.

"No, what's wrong?" Stephanie asked. Her mother sounded a little bit harried, and she was a little afraid something had happened to her father. Despite them being mostly on the outs, she didn't want anything bad to happen to him. He was still her father, and for that, she loved him. "Is it Dad? Is he okay?"

"Of course, nothing could take down your father that easily," Linda gently joked. "I wanted to check in on you. I didn't get a chance to watch the show earlier, but I recorded it, and I just got a chance to watch, and I saw what happened with Chris. Are you okay?"

"Oh," Stephanie hadn't even thought about her mother watching the show. She didn't know quite how to play this. She didn't enjoy lying to her mother, and with the lies she'd been telling lately, it was piling up. Still, her mother still talked to Shane, and if she told the truth, there was a possibility that Linda wouldn't keep the secret and ruin everything. She hated to do it, but like she had in regards to how she and Chris became a loving, married couple, she'd have to lie.

"What's going on, sweetheart?"

"I guess…I guess I probably should have waited a little longer before I married Chris," Stephanie said, dropping her voice a tiny bit, not so Chris couldn't hear (he was still being "comforted" by Trish), but so she sounded sadder than she actually felt.

"Oh, sweetheart, I knew this would be a problem," Linda said. "Relationships take time. They take time, and they take a great deal of maturing with each other. You can't just expect to meet a man and then marry him. It just doesn't work that way."

"I know, Mom, I should have known."

"You're young, you weren't sure what you were doing," Linda said, "maybe things just aren't going to work out, but you're allowed to make mistakes when you're young. I don't want to say that Chris is a bad man, I'm sure he's not, but what happened tonight, sweetheart, that happens a lot in this business. It's a tricky situation, you know that, you know what I've been through with your father."

Linda kept prattling on, but Stephanie trained her eyes towards Chris. Her mother's words rang true, but not for this. She trusted Chris, but there was that small, tiny fissure that let her mother's words seep in just the tiniest bit. This business was filled with fickleness that didn't exist in other areas of the real world. One day a wrestler and a diva could be in a relationship, and the next, they were kaput. It was the nature of the beast, this silly, almost incestuous beast that was wrestling. Chris was different though, and she had put her entire world in the palms of his hand. That was a double-edged sword though because she left herself vulnerable.

One wrong move, and Chris could crush her entire world.

"I just want you to be careful," her mother's voice floated through the haze. Stephanie looked again at Chris and he was smiling at her, making a noose sign and making her laugh a little. Then he made a "yapping" motion with his hand and she grinned even further. Yes, Chris could crush her entire world.

But she didn't believe he would.


	53. Chapter 53

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews, reads, and what not, hope you enjoy the chapter. :)

* * *

"Home!"

Stephanie set her purse on the table next to the door, taking off her jacket and hanging it up on the coat-rack. She moved her neck around a bit, hearing the satisfying crack as she turned it to the side. "I'm glad to be home too. It's been a long week."

"It has," Chris turned to her, wiggling his eyebrows playfully. "I'm just happy to be in a place where I don't have to pretend I hate my wife!"

Stephanie giggled, "I'm glad about that too."

Chris rushed to Stephanie and gathered her up in his arms, kissing her soundly while bending her backwards a little bit. "What do you say we go out tonight, just the two of us, just doing something ridiculously fancy or not fancy or fun or not fun, no wait, we should definitely do something fun."

"You really want to go out? We've been away from home for days and you want to go out?" she asked.

"Well, when you put it like that, staying in _does_ have its appeal. I just thought that since we haven't had time to actually enjoy ourselves in the last few days, we might want to take the opportunity."

"I'd rather stay in, if that's okay with you," Stephanie shrugged. "It's not that I don't appreciate the offer or anything…"

Chris kissed her again, but without the histrionics of the previous one. "Nah, it's cool, I'm glad to stay in. We can watch a movie or something. I can go rent one, or we can go rent one."

"Let's do it," Stephanie said, "and we can hit the grocery store because I'm sure our fridge is empty, I'll cook dinner."

"Wow, how domestic of you," Chris pinched her side. "Look at me, I've got the consummate housewife."

"The consummate one?" Stephanie asked. "Does this mean I should get a frilly apron and a string of pearls?"

"If that's all you're planning on wearing, I can't really argue against it," Chris told her, "throw in a pair of heels, and I think we're set."

"You're such a guy," Stephanie grabbed her jacket again, putting it on as Chris reached forward to button it up for her. "What's next, answering the door wrapped in plastic wrap or something?"

"No, because it might not be me, and that will only lead to your embarrassment," he told her. They walked back outside, Chris grasping Stephanie's hand as they got back in their car, which hadn't even cooled down from them arriving home. "So what are you going to make for me, wife?"

"I don't know, lasagna maybe, it's easy, I just make it, put it in the oven, that and garlic bread."

"I can make salad," Chris said, "and the bread so you're not too over-worked. I mean, you do run a company, and you do a damn fine job of it no matter what anyone seems to think. I mean, look at how things are going, you haven't sunk the company into bankruptcy yet."

She laughed, knowing he was just joking with her. "I'm sure my brother hopes that I'll sink it soon."

"No, we're not going to speculate on what he's thinking," Chris said, "as far as he's concerned, he believes this little act we're perpetrating. And that's exactly where we want him to be. We want him to think he's winning."

"But he's losing."

"Big time, he's a big time loser," Chris grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze. "He's a jerk, he's a jerk for what he's doing to you, what he's done to you, and we're going to take care of our Shane problem."

Stephanie thought back to her phone call with her mother. She didn't tell Chris about it, but it seemed this was the right time to at least bring it up. "So you know how I was talking with my mother the night before last, after Raw?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Chris asked.

"Well, I pretended like we were on the outs to her too, just in case she talks to my brother. It's not that my mother can't keep a secret, but I don't know, I figured that I should just act like we weren't happy with each other. Her words just got to me though."

Chris was her husband, and she was supposed to be the one person she didn't keep secrets from. Everyone said that communication was the key to a good relationship, and that's what she was trying to do now. She wanted to address what her mother said, not because she didn't believe in Chris, but because she did. She did believe him, and she wanted him to know what he was up against when it came to her family. There were still so many hurdles to overcome. Just because she loved him didn't mean things suddenly got easy.

"What did she say?" Chris asked. "I know it was probably something not very complimentary towards me."

"Yeah, well, it wasn't exactly nice about me either. She talked about how we went too fast, how it was a bad idea, how I have to protect myself," she gave the lowlights of the conversation. "she was saying how wrestlers can't be trusted, yet she was all for me marrying Andrew."

"You guys had been together, at least for a while, although, I must say, and this is coming from the guy you married on a whim, you and Andrew weren't even together that long. You're with me now, forever I might add, but if you weren't, I would have told you to maybe let a relationship actually develop. But since I'm the one reaping all the benefits, kudos to you for rushing."

"Don't make me laugh!" she told him, pushing his shoulder. "She was being serious. She said that she knew this would happen, and that's the part that really got to me, it was like she just expected us to crash and burn, and I know it's not out of the realm of possibility, I'm not stupid. And I know we've given everyone reason to doubt us, but it just kind of got to me, and I wanted to tell you about it."

"Of course we can't know what's going to happen in the future, nobody can know," Chris told her, "but right now, we're happy, right now, we're working, and I love us, I love you. As long as you trust me and want me, whatever anyone says is irrelevant."

"You're right," she told him. "I just want to prove everyone wrong. I want to show everyone that we're not fake. We may have started off that way, but we're not now."

"We're going to do that, once we make your brother look like the idiot that he is."

Stephanie smiled at that, "Yes, once we do that, and throw in Trish for good measure, stupid ho thinking she can swoop in and take my husband from me, I mean, please, she's just a bimbo."

"Wow, someone is getting a little hateful," Chris joked with her.

"Just slightly," Stephanie said as her phone starting ringing in her pocket. "I wonder who that can be."

"Ten bucks says it's your mom, so I'll just shut up," Chris said. Stephanie looked at her phone and sighed. "I was right, yes?"

"You were right," she rolled her eyes and answered the call. "Hey, Mom, what's going on?"

"I was thinking about our talk the other night, and I hate that you're in Florida all by yourself without a soul in the world on your side. I'm flying in tomorrow morning, so I'm going to need you to pick me up at the airport."

"What!" Stephanie said with such alarm Chris almost lost control of the car. He looked over at her with question in his eyes, but she wasn't looking at him. He turned his eyes back to the road, but looked at her every once in a while to make sure she was alright. "Mom, that isn't necessary, I'm okay."

"Sweetheart, I want to be there for you. I know you're going through a difficult time right now, and I want to be there for you. Maybe we could talk things out."

"Mom, I swear to God, I'm okay, I'm fine, you don't need to come here," she sent a panicked look to Chris.

"Tonight?" he hissed at her and she shook her head, making a little loop with her finger to indicate tomorrow. His face soured at that. He didn't need Linda interfering in what they were doing, plus did this mean he'd have to go stay in a hotel or something?

"I'm not taking no for an answer," Linda said, "we need to sort out your life, Stephanie. It seems like everything is spiraling out of control, and I can't and won't watch that happen to you. I love you too much to see you spiral like that."

"I'm not spiraling," Stephanie told her mother. "Chris and I, we're going to work things out, hopefully." She shrugged at Chris, trying desperately to keep their plan going while not making it seem like there was no hope between the two of them. "We need to work this out on our own. I can't have my mother here."

"Is he staying with you then?" Linda asked.

"Yes, he's staying with me, it's his house."

"See, that's another thing, you're married, are you two? Oh, I don't even know," Linda sounded tired, and while Stephanie was sad that she was the one who brought that out in her mother, she could handle herself.

"Mom, it's fine, please don't come," Stephanie begged. "I don't need you here. I need to be an adult, and I can't do that with you here."

"I just want to talk to you," Linda told her, "I want to sort things out with you. One second you're getting married to Andrew, the next second, you're married to Chris, now you two are going through all these problems, and sweetheart, you barely knew him when you met him, and I don't want to say I told you so, but I knew this would happen."

Stephanie slapped her forehead, blowing out some air. "Mom, please, I'm asking you one more time, please do not do this. I don't need you to be here, please."

"I'll call you in the morning to let you know when I'm coming in," Linda completely ignored what her daughter was saying, and Stephanie felt like she was floundering again. Why was it her entire family believed her incompetent? She wasn't as outspoken as her family, but that didn't mean she didn't have her own voice. She did, and she wished they would hear it. Even her mother was turning on her.

"Mom…"

"I love you, Stephanie, I'll see you later," Linda hung up without letting Stephanie get in a word. Stephanie pulled her phone away from her face, staring down at the screen. She wanted to chuck it out the window, but she knew she couldn't.

"Steph?" Chris asked tentatively.

"She's coming tomorrow," Stephanie blinked back tears of frustration. "Why are you the only one, the _only_ one that listens to me when I talk?"

"Steph," this time it was decidedly sympathetic.

"She's coming here tomorrow to _sort _my life out," Stephanie said, "even when I told her I'm adult, they will never see that in me. Even my mother, she was just jumping for the chance to come here and tell me what I'm doing wrong, like my entire life is wrong."

Chris pulled into the video store parking lot, picking a spot away from the front. He parked the car and cut the engine, turning in his seat as best he could. He reached out his hand and rubbed her thigh. "Hey, whoever doesn't listen to you, whatever, who cares, they will eventually. _I_ listen to you, I hear you, and as long as you have me, your words are not falling on deaf ears."

"Everyone wants to try and fix me."

"I think you're great the way you are," Chris told her. "We'll deal with your mom, alright, we can put on the act, and we'll just…not listen to her, okay?"

"So much for our romantic night in."

"No way, we're still getting our night in, tomorrow, we'll just have to get back on the outs."


	54. Chapter 54

"Does everything look okay?"

Chris looked around the now spotless house. "It looks like nobody lives here and this is in fact a museum."

"I will take that to mean it does," Stephanie told him, wagging a finger at him slightly. "I just don't want to give her anything else to criticize because I think that's the only thing she's coming here to do."

"You don't know that," Chris pointed out. He wanted to give Stephanie's mother the benefit of the doubt. Actually, he just wanted his wife to calm down. Once their movie was finished, Stephanie set about cleaning the house like a madwoman, staying up until three in the morning scrubbing, rinsing, dusting, and vacuuming (which meant he was staying up too). After a few hours sleep, she was right back at it this morning.

"I do know that, you didn't hear her on the phone last night," Stephanie sighed, sinking into the couch next to Chris. He wrapped his arm loosely around her shoulders, which she took as an invitation to cuddle into his side. She curled herself against him, and he smiled at the top of her head. There was something so nice when she just cuddled up to him. It was so domesticated, so natural, and he loved it.

"But that was last night, she's had a whole night to think."

"Yeah, and 'I told you so' is going to be on her tongue the entire time she's here, and there isn't any 'I told you so' because I'm really happy right now, not _right now_, but I'm happy with you, and she's going to try and ruin it by trying to talk me out of loving you."

"Well, if she succeeds at that, I'll just have to get you to love me again, I'll fight for your hand," he squeezed her shoulder, pulling her tighter against him. She laughed airily and let her head fall against his chest. She listened to his heartbeat for a few seconds, languishing in the silence of the house.

"I don't know what she's going to want to do with you."

"Maim me?" Chris shrugged. "We can pretend if you want, or we don't have to, I mean, maybe your mom will understand. She seems like a pretty understanding person, and I'm sure underneath all the judgment, she really just wants you to be happy."

"She still makes me feel like my decisions are terrible."

"Baby, we have to remember that this isn't easy for anyone. It's not even easy for us when you think about it. We're still learning about each other, we're still getting used to the little quirks and other things that most normal couples will have already dealt with. I know you find some things about me annoying."

"I hate how you leave the door open when you're practicing your bass and I'm trying to work. You _never_ remember to do that, and you play the same thing over and over again, and it gets me so annoyed."

"See, we're learning, and I will try harder to make sure I close the door."

"What bugs you about me?"

"Nothing," he told her.

"Oh come on, don't pull that on me," she leaned back a little so she could look him in the eye. "This isn't a wife test or anything like that, I genuinely want to know what bugs you about me. I'm an adult, I can take it."

"Well, it kind of annoys me when you bring papers to bed, not because we have to have sex or anything like that, you just scatter them all over the place and I can't move, and yeah, I may find that kind of, sort of annoying, but that's the only thing that came to me off the top of my head, so that must mean everything else are just minor annoyances," he told her.

"Then I won't bring work to bed," Stephanie smiled at him. "I don't want to pretend things are wrong with you, not in our home. I don't want to do that. I want to be ourselves. We only get so few days at home, and to spend them acting like we're—"

The doorbell rang and Stephanie groaned loudly. Her mother insisted on taking a taxi here and not bothering Stephanie with picking her up at the airport. After giving her the address, Stephanie spent the time dreading the doorbell. Now it was here, and she still didn't know what to do about the situation. She wanted to bring her brother down, but she didn't want to lie to her mother, and she didn't want her mother to look down on Chris for any reason. She kissed Chris briefly, deciding that her decision could be made in the distance from this couch to the front door.

She stood up, dusting herself off for no reason, and walked slowly to the door. She opened it with a sigh and hesitation. Her mother stood on the other side, a large (too large) suitcase by her side. She smiled at her daughter and opened up her arms. Stephanie stepped into them reluctantly, letting her mother wrap her arms around her. For a moment, she felt like a little girl again, and nothing like the adult she actually was.

"Is Chris here?"

"Yeah, he is, but Mom, before you—"

Linda sidestepped Stephanie and walked into the house, taking her suitcase along with her. Stephanie stared after her, her mouth slightly agog as her mother put her suitcase next to the stairs and walked into the living room like she'd been there before. Stephanie simply followed her as she walked into the room, causing Chris to stand up. He took a few steps towards her, but didn't know what to do otherwise.

"Um, Mrs. McMahon…Linda, hello," he said awkwardly, reaching out his hand for her to shake, but she was having none of that and enveloped him in a hug, much to his surprise and Stephanie's as well. "Oh, um, hey." Chris awkwardly patted her back.

"Okay, we're going to fix this, whatever this is between you two," Linda told them, clapping her hands together. "Your father and I have been married a long time, and we've worked through it, obviously, the same can be done for you. There's a reason you two married each other, I may not understand it, and I may think you rushed into it, but this is what it is right now, and I'm not letting either of you fail, Chris, you might as well be my son now."

Chris looked at Stephanie in surprise. Stephanie looked right back at him with the same look. She expected her mother's reproach, not her help. It wasn't that they needed her help, but it was actually a little refreshing that this wasn't someone to judge them, but to help them. It was then that Stephanie felt like she could tell her mother everything, but then…then what? Would her mother even side with her? Or would she side with Shane?

"Mom, Chris and I really appreciate you being here, but we're fine, we're working things out on our own," Stephanie said calmly, glancing at Chris, who simply smirked back at her. "Our issues are our own."

"I don't want you to be upset," Linda said, "I don't want that for you, I want you both to be happy."

"I am…happy," Stephanie said, looking down at her feet. "Mom, nothing is wrong between Chris and I, I'm telling you right now, things are okay between the two of us. There's nothing wrong with us. There's nothing wrong with our marriage, and I love Chris very much."

"I…I don't understand what you're saying here, Stephanie," Linda looked at her in confusion. "I've watched the shows, I've heard everything backstage with the two of you, your brother has told me—"

"Shane is trying to get me ousted and take the power for himself," Stephanie said, "he's even gone so far as to bring in Trish."

"Bring in Trish? I don't get it, bring in Trish for what?"

"To seduce me," Chris cut in. "Shane tried to get Trish to seduce me away from Stephanie. That's what that was all about. Trish is trying to use me so she can…well, we don't know what she has with Shane exactly, but we know she's working with him."

"Yeah, he hates that I took control when everything happened. Mom, I'm only telling you this because I trust you. I know that this puts you in a difficult situation because Shane is well, your son, but this is how it is. I won't let him take it from me."

"I can't believe Shane would stoop this low."

"Don't you, Mom? I mean, come on, don't you? Think of how he acted when I first started dating Andrew? And I'm happier with Chris than I ever was with Andew," she smiled over at Chris.

"So you're…not fighting?"

"No, we're really actually happy," Chris told his mother-in-law, going over and putting his arm around Stephanie. Stephanie glanced up at him, smiling softly before she wrapped her arm around his waist. "I love your daughter, I really do, and yeah, we were quick and fast, and everything was whirlwind, but I love her."

"And I love him, Mom, but we just…can we sit?"

"Yes, I think I need to sit," Linda said, taking a seat on the couch. "So…you're trying to go after your brother because he's trying to become the president and he used Trish to seduce Chris, but you know about it!"

"Mom, I'm an adult," Stephanie said, "and yet, I feel like I haven't been treated like one. Not by Dad or Shane at the very least. They thought they could control me, Shane thinks that if he breaks up Chris and I, he can, I don't know, control me, and that's not who I am. It wasn't who I was then either, before Chris, but I just didn't stick up for myself. I do now. Chris has given me the confidence to do what I want and think how I want, and it's one of the biggest reasons why I love him."

"Your daughter is amazing," Chris added, "and I'm not going to let her brother take that away from her."

Linda looked at her daughter and son-in-law, and despite anything she may have ever thought of Chris and Stephanie's relationship, they seemed happy now. She didn't understand it, and she still wondered what really happened, but there was no way you could fake the way Stephanie looked at Chris or the way he was rubbing her knuckles with his thumb. And her son? She didn't know what to do about her son. If he was acting like such a child, and all because his sister had some attention.

"I don't get any of this, are you going to hurt Shane?"

"No, there were no plans to actually hurt him, just make sure he knows that I'm not going anywhere," Stephanie said. "Mom, I've worked hard, and we're doing a good job, lots of people are watching the shows, the matches are compelling, everything is going great, and I'm not taking all the credit, but I think I've been doing a good job, don't you think?"

"You've been impressive, even your father has said so."

"Dad said that?" Stephanie tried not to let herself light up, but it was difficult because knowing her father didn't think she was screwing up would mean so much to her. She still wanted to make him proud, make him see that she was an independent person who could hold more responsibility than just being a lowly, little accountant.

"Yeah, he said that you've been doing a great job."

"Told you," Chris whispered to her. Then he turned to Linda again, "We just want to teach Shane a lesson, that's all. Just a lesson."

Linda sighed. Her son _could_ use a little comeuppance. One thing the McMahon family had too much of was ego. Her husband had it in spades, and her son was showing the same thing. Even Stephanie had a little bit of it. And could it hurt if Shane could see that his sister was not a pawn in some game? No, it really couldn't, not if this was just a lesson.

"Okay, I won't say a word."


End file.
